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THE 



SFAHIARDS 



iisr 



FLORIDA. 



SI \ BY 

I 

GEORGE R. FAIRBANKS. 




COLUMBUS DREW, 

JACKSONVILLE, Pla. 



THE 






SPANIARDS IN FLORIDA, 



COMPKISING THE NOTABLE SETTLEMENT 



HUGUENOTS IN 1564, 



HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES 



St. Augustine, 



Founded A. D. 1565. 



GEORGE R. FAIRBANKS, 

VICE-PEEBIDENT FLORIDA HISTORICAL SOCIETY: HONORARY MEMBER NEW-YORK HISTORICAL SOCIETY: 
LECTURER ON AMERICAN HISTORY IN THE UNIVERSITY OF THE SOUTH. 



JACKSONVILLE, FLA. 
COLUMBUS DKEW. 

1868. 






Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1868, by 

COLUMBUS DREW, 

In the Clerk's 0£Bce of the District Court of the United States for the Southern 
District of New York. 







^^<^//J/^_ 



RESPECTFULLY INSCRIBED 
TO 

BIJCKINOHAM SMITH, ESQ., 

U. S. SECRETART OF LEGATION AT MADRID, 

TO WHOSE EFFORTS IN THE 

DISCOYERY AND PRESERVATION OF THE HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES OF THE 
SPANISH DOMINION IN AMERICA, 

A GRATEFUL ACKNOWLEDGMENT 

IS DUE FKOM 



AMERICAN SCHOLARS. 



PEEFACE. 



This volume, relating to the history and antiquities of the oldest 
settlement in the United States, has grown out of a lecture delivered 
])}' the author, and which he was desired to embody in a more perma- 
nent form. 

The large amount of interesting material in my possession, has made 
my work rather one of laborious condensation than expansion. 

I have endeavored to preserve as fully as possible, the style and 
quaintness of the old writers from whom I have drawn, rather than to 
transform or embellish the narrative with the supposed graces of mod- 
ern diction ; and, as much of the work consisted in translations from 
foreign idioms, this peculiarly un-English style, if I may so call it, 
will be more noticeably observed. I have mainly sought to give it a 
permanent value, as founded on the most reliable ancient authorities ; 
and thus, to the extent of the ground which it covers, to make it a 
valuable addition to the history of our country. 

In that portion of the work devoted to the destruction of the Hug- 
uenot colony and the forces of Ribault, I have in the main followed 
the Spanish accounts, desiring to divest the narrative of all suspicion 
of prejudice or unfairness; Barci'a, the principal authority, as is well 
known, professing the same faith as Menendez, and studiously endeav- 
oring throughout his work, to exalt the character of the Adelantado. 

I am under great obligations to my friend, Buckingham Smith, 
Esq., for repeated favors in the course of its preparation. 



PREFACE TO THE SECOND EDITION. 



The interest evinced in the publication of the first edition of this 
volume, in 1858, under the title of History and Antiquities of 
St. Augustine, has induced the author to prepare a second edition 
for the press, under the present title, as being more exactly descriptive 
of that portion of the liistory of Florida embraced in its pages. 

He hopes at no distant day to put to press the History of Florida, in 
a much more complete form, and embracing the chequered and various 
pictures of the many expeditions which sought either to found upon 
its shores a kingdom to satiate their ambition, or to find wealth com- 
mensurate with their desires. 

A chapter of no mean interest in the history of Florida has been 
added since the first preface w;is written. Battles have been fought 
upon its soil, more considerable as to the numbers engaged and the 
fierceness of the fray, than any ever before recorded. But as this 
chapter forms a portion of the general history of the State rather than 
of the old city which played but an inconsiderable part in the contest, 
it does not fall within the purview of this work to make more than a 
brief mention of this period. 

G. R. F. 

University Place, Tenx., 

Oct. 1, 18G8. 



CONTENTS. 



Page. 

CHAPTER I. 

Introductory !» 

CHAPTER II. 

First discovery, 1512 to 1565. — Juan Ponce de Leon 11 

CHAPTER III. 

Ribault, Laudonniere, and Menendez — Settlements of the Huguenots, 

and foundation of St. Augustine. — 1562 — 1565—1568 1:^, 

CHAPTER IV. 

The attack on Fort Caroline. — 1565 I'.i 

CHAPTER V. 

Escape of Laudonniere and others from Fort Caroline — Adventures of 

the fugitives :.>{ 

CHAPTER VI. 

Site of Fort Caroline, afterwards called San Matteq 31 

CHAPTER VII. 

Menendez's return to St. Augustine — Shipwreck of Ribault— Massacre 

of part of his command. — A. D. 1565 38 

CHAPTER VIII. 

Fate of Ribault and his followers — Bloody massacre at Matanzas, 1565. 46 
CHAPTER IX. 

Fortifying of St. Augustine — Disaffections and mutinies — Approval of 

Menendez' acts by king of Spain. — 1565 — 1568 ol 

CHAPTER X. 

The notable revenge of Dominic de Gourgues — Return of Menendez — 

Indian Mission. — 1568 6) 



8 CONTENTS. 

Page. 

CHAPTER XL 

Sir Francis Drake's attack upon St. Augustine — Establishment of mis- 
sions — Massacre of missionaries at St. Augustine. — 1586 — 1638 65 

CHAPTER XII. 

Subjection of the Apalachian Indians — Construction of the fort, sea 

wall, &c.— 1638— 1700 71 

CHAPTER XIII. 

Attack on St. Augustine by Gov. Moore of South Carolina — DitBcul- 
ties -with the Georgians.— 1702— 1732 77 

CHAPTER XIV. 

Siege of St. Augustine by Oglethorpe.— 1732— 1740 82 

CHAPTER XV. 

Completion of the castle — Descriptions of St. Augustine a century 

ago— English occupation of Florida.— 1755— 1763— 1783 HO 

CHAPTER XVI. 

llo-cession of Florida to Spain — Erection of the Parish Church — Change 

of flags.— 1783— 1821... 100 

CHAPTER XVII. 

Transfer of Florida to the United States — American occupation — An- 
cient buildings, &c lO'i 

CHAPTER XVIII. 

Present appearance of St. Augustine, as given by the author of Thana- 

topsis — Its climate and salubrity 110 

CHAPTER XIX. 

St. Augustine in its old age.— 1565— 1868 US 



THE HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES 



OP 



ST. A.TjaXJSTIISrE, Fla. 



CHAPTER I. 

INTRODUCTORY. 



The Saint Augustine of the present and the St. Augus- 
tine of the past, are in striking contrast. 

We see, to-day, a town less in population than hundreds 
of places of but few months' existence, dilapidated in its 
appearance, with the stillness of desolation hanging over it,. 
its waters undisturbed except by the passing canoe of th& 
fisherman, its streets unenlivened by busy traffic, and at 
mid-day it might be supposed to have sunk under the en- 
chanter's wand into an almost eternal sleep. 

With no participation in the active schemes of life, and 
no hopes for the future ; with no emulation, and no feverish 
visions of future greatness ; with no corner lots on sale or 
in demand; with no stocks, save those devoted to disturbers 
of the public peace ; with no excitements and no events ; a 
quiet, undisturbed, dreamy vision of still life surrounds its 
walls, and creates a sensation of entire repose, pleasant or 
otherwise, as it falls upon the heart of the weary wanderer 
sick of life's busy bustle, or upon the restless mind of him 
who looks to nothing as life except perpetual, unceasing 
action — the one rejoicing in its rest, the other chaling under 
its monotony. And yet, about the old city there clings a 
host of historic associations, that throw around it a charm, 
which few can fail to feel. 

Its life is in its past ; and when we recall the fact that it 
was the first permanent settlement of the white man, by 
more than forty years, in this confederacy ; that here for the 
first time, isolated within the shadows of the primeval for- 
est, the civilization of the Old World made its abidinjr 
9 



10 THE HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES 

place, where all was new, and wild, and strange ; that this 
now so insignificant place was the key of an empire ; that 
npon its fate rested the destiny of a nation ; that its occupa- 
tion or retention decided the fate of a people ; that it was 
itself a vice provincial court, boasted of its adelantados, 
men of the first mark and note, of its Royal Exchequer, its 
public functionaries, its brave men at arms ; that its proud 
name, conferred by its monarch, " Le siemprejiel Ciudad de 
San Auaustin,'' — The ever faithful City of St. Augustine — 
stood out upon the face of history ; that here the cross was 
first planted ; that from the Papal throne itself rescripts 
were addressed to its governors ; that the first great eitbrts 
at Christianizing the fierce tribes of America proceeded 
from this spot; that the martyr's blood was first here shed ; 
that within these quiet walls the din of arms, the noise of 
battle, and the fierce cry of assaulting columns, have been 
heard ; — Who will not then feel that we stand on historic 
ground, and that an interest attaches to the annals of this 
ancient city far more than is possessed by mere brick and 
mortar, rapid growth, or unwonted prosperitj^ ? Moss- 
grown and shattered, it appeals to our instinctive feelings of 
reverence for antiquity ; and we feel desirous to know the 
history of its earlier days. 



OF ST. AUGUSTINE, FLORIDA. ' 11 



CHAPTER II. 

' FIRST DISCOVERY, 1^2 TO 15fij— JUAN PONCE DE LEON. 

Among the sturdy adventurers of the sixteenth century 
who sought both fame and fortune in the path of discovery, 
was Ponce de Leon, a companion of Columbus on his sec- 
ond voyage, a veteran and bold mariner, who, after a long 
and adventurous life, feeling the infirmities of age and the 
shadows of the decline of life hanging over him, willingly 
credited the tale that in this, the beautiful land of his imag- 
ination, there existed a fountain whose waters could restore 
youth to palsied age, and beauty to efface the marks of time. 

The story ran that far to the north there existed a land 
abounding in gold and all manner of desirable things, but, 
above all, possessing a river and springs of so remarkable a 
virtue that their waters would confer immortal youth on 
whoever bathed in them ; that upon a time a considerable 
expedition of the Indians of Cuba had departed northward 
in search of this beautiful country and these waters of im- 
mortality, who had never returned, and who, it was suppo- 
sed, were in a renovated state, still enjoying the felicities ot 
the happy land. 

Furthermore, Peter Martyr affirms, in his second decade, 
addressed to the Pope, " that among the islands on the 
north side of Hispaniola, there is one about three hundred 
and twenty-five leagues distant, as they say which have 
searched the same, in the which is a continual spring ot 
running water, of such marvelous virtue that the water 
thereof being drunk, perhaps Avith some diet, maketh old 
men young again. And here I must make protestation to 
your Holiness not to think this to be said lightly, or rashly ; 
for they have so spread this rumor for a truth throughout 
all the court, that not only all the people, but also many of 
them whom wisdom or fortune have divided from the com- 
mon sort, think it to be true." * Thoroughly believing in 

* The fountain of youth is a very ancient fable ; and the reader will be 
reminded of the amusing story of the accomplishment of this miracle, told 
in Hawthorne's Twice-Told Tales, and of the marvelous effects produced 
by imbibing this celebrated spring water. 



12 " THE HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES 

the verity of this pleasant account, this gallant cavalier 
iitted out an expedition from Porto Rico, and in the progress 
of his search came upon the coast of Florida, on Easter 
Monday, 1512, supposing then, and for a long period after- 
wards, "that it was an island. Partly in consequence of the 
bright spring verdure and flowery plains that met his eye, 
and the magnificence of the magnolia, the bay and the lau- 
rel, and partly in honor of the day, Pascua Florida, or Palm 
Sunday, and reminded, probably, of its appropriateness by 
the profusion of the cabbage palms near the point of his 
landing, he gave to the country the name of Florida. 

On the 3d of April, 1512, three hundred and fifty-five 
years ago, he landed a few miles north of St. Augustine, 
and took possession of the country for the Spanish crown. 
He found the natives fierce and implacable ; and after ex- 
ploring the country for some distance around, and trying 
the virtue of all the streams, and growing neither younger 
nor handsomer, he left the country without making a per- 
manent settlement. 

The subsequent explorations of E'arvaez, in 1526, and of 
Be Soto, in 1539, were made in another portion of our 
State, and do not bear immediately upon the subject of our 
investigation, although foraiing a most interesting portion 
of our general history. 



OF ST. AUGUSTINE, FLOKIDA. 13 



CHAPTER III. 

RIBAULT, LAUDONNIERE, AND MENENDEZ SETTLEMENTS OF THE 

HUGUENOTS, AND FOUNDATION OF ST. AUGUSTINE. 

1562—1565—1568. 

The settlement of Florida had its origin in the religions 
troubles experienced by the Huguenots under Charles IX. 
in France. 

Their distinguished leader, Admiral Coligny, as early as 
1555 projected colonies in America, and sent an expedition 
to Brazil, which proved unsuccessful. Having procured 
permission from Charles IX. to found a colony in Florida — 
a designation which embraced in rather an indetinite man- 
ner the whole country from the Chesapeake to the Tortugas — 
he sent an expedition in 1562 from France, under command 
of Jean Ribault, composed of many young men of good 
family. They first landed at the tSt. John's River, where 
they erected a monument, but finally established a settle- 
ment at Port Royal, South Carolina, and erected a fort. 
After some months, however, in consequence of dissensions 
among the ofiicers of the garrison, and difl5.culties with the 
Indians, this settlement was abandoned. 

In 1564 another expedition came out under the command 
of Rene de Laudonniere, and made their first landing at 
the River of Dolphins, being the present harbor of St. Au- 
gustine, and so named by them in consequence of the great 
number of Dolphins (Porpoises) seen by them at its mouth. 
They afterwards coasted to the north, and entered the River 
St. Johns, called by them the River May. 

Upon an examination of this river, Laudonniere conclu- 
ded to establish his colony on its banks; and proceeding 
about two leagues above its mouth, built a fort upon a pleas- 
ant hill of " mean height," which, in honor of his sovereign, 
he named Fort Caroline. 

The colonists after a few months were reduced to great 
distress, and were about taking measures to abandon the 
country a second time, when Ribault arrived with reinforce- 
ments. 



14 THE HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES 

It is supposed that intelligence of these expeditions was 
communicated by the enemies of Coligny to the court of 
Spain. 

Jealousy of the aggrandizement of the French in the 
New World, mortification for their own unsuccessful efforts 
in that quarter, and a still stronger motive of hatred to the 
faith of the Huguenot, induced the bigoted Philip 11. of Spain, 
to dispatch Pedro Menendez de Aviles, a brave, bigoted and 
remorseless soldier, to drive out the French colony, and take 
possession of the country for himself. 

The compact made between the King and Menendez was, 
that he should furnish one galleon completely equipped, and 
provisions for a force of six hundred men : that he should 
conquer and settle the country. He obligated himselfto 
carry one hundred horses, two hundred horned cattle, four 
hundred hogs, four hundred sheep and some goats, and five 
hundred slaves, (for which he had a permission free of du- 
ties), the third part of which should be men, tor his own ser- 
vice and that of those who went with him, to aid in cultiva- 
ting the land and building. That he should take twelve 
priests, and four fathers of the Jesuit order. He was to build 
two or three towns of one hundred families, and in each town 
should build a fort according to the nature of the country. 
He Avas to have the title of Adelantado of the country, as also 
to be entitled a Marquis, and his heirs after him, to have a 
tract of land, receive a salary of 2,000 ducats, a percentage of 
the royal duties, and have the freedom of all the other ports 
of New Spain.* 

His force consisted, at starting, of eleven sail of vessels, 
with two thousand and six hundred men ; but, owing to 
storms and accidents, not more than one half arrived. He 
came upon the coast on the 28th August, 1565, shortly after 
the arrival of the fleet of Ilibault. On the 7th day of Septem- 
ber, Menendez cast anchor in the River of Dolphins, the har- 
bor of St. Augustine. He had previously discovered and 
given chase to some of the vessels of Pibault, off the mouth 
of the River May. The Indian village of Selooe then stood 
upon the site of St. Augustine, and the landing of Menen- 
dez was upon the spot where the city of St. Augustine now 
stands. 

Fray Francisco Lopez de Mendoza, the Chaplain of the 
Expedition, thus chronicles the disembarkation and attend- 
ant ceremonies : — 

" On Saturday the 8th day of September, the day of the nativity 

* Barcia Ensayo, Cron. 66. 



OF ST. AUGUSTINE, FLORIDA. 15 

of our Lady, the General disembarked, with numerous banners dis- 
played, trumpets and other martial music resounding, and amid salvos 
of artillery. 

" Carrying a cross, I proceeded at the head, chanting the hymn Te 
Deu7n Laudamus. The General marched straight up to the cross, 
together with all those who accompanied him ; and, kneeling, they all 
kissed the cross. A great number of Indians looked upon these cere- 
monies, and imitated whatever they saw done. Thereupon the General 
took possession of the country in the name of his Majesty. All the 
officers then took an oath of allegiance to him, as their general, and as 
adelantado of the whole country." 

The name of St. Augustine was given, in the usual man- 
ner of the early voyagers, because they had arrived upon 
the coast on the day dedicated in their calendar to that emi- 
nent saint of the primitive church, revered alike by the 
good of all ages for his learning and piety. 

The first troops who landed, saj^s Mendoza, were well 
received by the Indians, who gave them a large mansion 
belono-inff to the chief, situated near the banks of the river. 

Oct' 

The engineer officers immediately erected an entrenchment 
of earth, and a ditch around this house, with a slope made 
of earth and fascines, these being the only means of defense 
which the country presents ; for, says the father witli sur- 
prise, "there is not a stone to be found in the whole 
country." They landed eighty cannon from the ships, of 
which the lightest weighed two thousand five hundred 
pounds. 

But in the mean time Menendez had by no means forgot- 
ten the errand upon which he principally came ; and by 
inquiries of the Indians he soon learned the position of the 
French fort and the condition of its defenders. Impelled 
by necessity, Laudonniere had been forced to seize from the 
Indians food to supply his famished garrison, and had thus 
incurred their enmity, which was soon to produce its sad 
results. 

The Spaniards numbered about six hundred combatants, 
and the French about the same ; but arrangements had been 
made for further accessions to the Spanish force, to be drawn 
from St. Domingo and Havana, and these were daily ex- 
pected. 

It was the habit of those days to devolve almost every 
event upon the ordering of a special providence ; and each 
nation had come to look upon itself almost in the light of 
a peculiar people, led like the Israelites of old by signs and 
wonders ; and as in their own view all their actions were 
directed by the design of advancing God's glory as well asi 



16 THE HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES 

their own purposes, so the blessing of Heaven would surely 
accompany them in all their undertakings. 

So believed the Crusaders on the plains of Palestine ; so 
believed the conquerors of Mexico and Peru ; so believed 
the Puritan settlers of j^ew England (alike in their Indian 
wars and their oppressive social polity) ; and so believed, 
also, the followers of Menendez and of Ribault ; and in 
this simple and trusting faith, the worthy chaplain gives us 
the following account of the miraculous escape and deliv- 
erance of a portion of the Spanish fleet : — 

" God and his Holy Mother have performed another great miracle 
in our favor. The day following the landing of the General in the 
fort, he said to us that he was very uneasy because his galley and an- 
other vessel were at anchor, isolated and a league at sea, being unable 
to enter the port on account of the shallowness of the water; and that 
he feared that the French might come and capture or maltreat them. 
As soon as this idea came to him he departed, with fifty men, to go on 
board of his galleon. He gave orders to three shallops which were 
moored in the river to go out and take on board the provisions and 
troops which were on board the galleon. The next day, a shallop 
having gone out thither, they took on board as much of the provisions 
as they could, and more than a hundred men who were in the vessel, 
and returned towards the shore ; but half a league before arriving at 
the bar they were overtaken by so complete a calm that they were un- 
able to proceed further, and thereupon cast anchor and passed the night 
in that place. The day following at break of day they raised anchor 
as ordered by the pilot, as the rising of the tide began to be felt. 
When it was fully light they saw astern of them at the poop of the 
vessel, two French ships which during the night had been in search of 
them. The etiemy arrived with the intention of making an attack 
upon us. The French made all haste in their movements, for we had 
no arms on board, and had only embarked the provisions. When day 
appeared, and our people discovered the French, they addressed their 
prayers to our Lady of Bon Secours d' i'trera, and supplicated her to 
grant them a little wind, for the French were already close up to them. 
They say that Our Lachj descended, herself, upon the vessel ; for the 
wind freshened and blew fair for the bar, so that the shallop could 
enter it. The French followed it ; but as the bar has but little depth 
and their vessels were large, they were not able to go over it, so that 
our men and the provisions made a safe harbor. When it became still 
clearer they perceived besides the two vessels of the enemy, four others 
at a distance, being the same which we had seen in port the evening 
■of our arrival. They were well furnished with both troops and artil- 
lery, and had directed themselves for our galleon and the other ship, 
which were alone at sea. In this circumstance God accorded us two 
favors. The first was, that the same evening after they had discharged 
the provisions and the troops I have spoken of, at midnight the galleon 
and other vessel put to sea without being perceived by the enemy ; 



OF ST. AUGUSTINE, FLOKIDA. 17 

the one for Spain, and the other for Havana, for the purpose of seek- 
ing the fleet which was there ; and in this way neither was taken. 

" The second favor, by which God rendered us a still greater service, 
was that on the day following the one I have described there arose a 
storm, and so great a tempest that certainly the greater part of the 
French vessels must have been lost at sea ; for they were overtaken 
upon the most dangerous coast I have ever seen, and were very close 
to the shore ; and if our vessels, that is, the galleon and its consort, are 
not shipwrecked, it is because they were already more than twelve 
leagues off the coast, which gave them the facility of running before 
the wind, and maneuvering as well as they could, relying upon the aid 
of God to preserve them." * 

Menenclez had ascertained from the Indians that a large 
number of the French troops had embarked on board of the 
vessels which he had seen oif the harbor, and he had good 
ground for believing that these vessels would either be cast 
helpless upon the shore, or be driven off b}^ the tempest to 
such a distance as would render their return for some days 
impossible. He at once conceived the project of attacking 
the French fort upon the river May, by laud. 

A council of war was held, and after some discussion, for 
the most part adverse to the plan proposed by him, Menen- 
dez spoke as follows : 

" Gentlemen and Brothers ! we have before us now an opportunity 
which if improved by us will have a happy result. I am satisfied that 
the French fleet which four days since fled from me, and has now 
come to seek me, has been reinforced with the larger part of the gar- 
rison of their fort, to which, nor to port, will they be able to return for 
many days according to appearances ; and since they are all Lutherans, 
as we learned before we sailed from Spain, by the edicts which Jean 
Ribault published before embarking, in order that no Catholic at the 
peril of his life should go in his fleet, nor any Catholic books be taken ; 
and this they themselves declared to us the night they fled from us, 
and hence our war must be to blood and fire, not only on account of 
the orders we are under, but because they have sought us in order to 
destroy us, that we should not plant our holy religion in these regions, 
and to establish their own abominable and crazy sect among the Indi- 
ans ; so that the more promptly we shall punish them, we shall the 

* The galleon spoken of was Menendez's own flag ship, the El Pelayo, 
the largest vessel in his fleet, fitted out at his own expense, and which had 
brought four hundred men. He had put on board of her a lieutenant and 
some soldiers, besides fifteen Lutherans as prisoners, whom he was sending 
home to the Inquisition at Seville. The orders to his ofiicers were to go as 
speedily as possible to the island of Hispaniola, to bring provisions and 
additional forces. Upon the passage, the Lutheran prisoners, with some 
Levantine sailors, rose upon the Spaniards, killed the commander, and car- 
ried the vessel into Denmark. Menendez was much chagrined when he 
ascertained the fate of his favorite galleon, a long period afterwards. 



18 THE HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES 

more speedily do a service to our God and our king, and comply with 
our conscience and our duty. 

" To accomplish this, we must choose five hundred arquebuse men 
and pikemen, and carry provisions in our knapsacks for eight days, 
divided into ten companies, each one with its standard and its captain, 
and go with this force by land to examine the settlements and fort of 
our enemies ; and as no one knows the road, I will guide you within 
two points by a mariner's compass; and where we cannot get along, 
we will open a way with our axes; and moreover, I have with me a 
Frenchman who has been more than a year at their fort, and who says 
he knows the ground for two leagues around the fort. 

" If we shall arrive without discovery, it may be that falling upon 
it at daylight we may take it, by planting upon it twenty scaling lad- 
ders, at the cost of fifty lives. If we are discovered, we can form in 
the shelter of the wood, which I am assured is not more than a quarter 
of a league distant, and planting there ten standards, send forward a 
trumpeter requiring them to leave the fort and the country, and return 
to their own country, off'ering them ships and provisions for the voyage. 
They will imagine that we have a much greater army with us, and they 
may surrender ; and if they do not, we shall at least accomplish that 
they will leave us undisturbed in this our own settlement, and we shall 
know the way, so that we may return to destroy them the succeeding 
spring." 

After some discussion it was concluded that after hearing 
mass they should undertake the expedition on the third day. 
Considerable opposition was manifested on the part of the 
officers ; but, with a consummate knowledge of human na- 
ture, the Adelantado got up the most splendid dinner in his 
power, and invited his recreant officers to the repast, and 
dexterously appealed to their fears, as well as their pride, 
and overcame their reluctance to undortake the unknown 
dangers of a first march through Florida at a wetseasou, an 
actual acquaintance with which would still more have damp- 
ened their ardor. 

The troops assembled promptly upon the day appointed, 
at the sound of the trumpet, the life and the drum, and they 
all went to hear mass, except Juan de Vicente, who said 
he had a disorder of the stomach, and in his leg ; and when 
some friends wished to urge his coming, he replied : " I vow 
to God, that I will wait until the news comes that our force 
is entirely cut off, when we who remain will embark in our 
three vessels, and go to the Indies, where there will be no 
necessity of our all perishing like beasts." 

This Juan Vicente seems to have been an apt specimen 
of a class of croakers not pqculiar to any age or country. 
Of his future history the chronicle gives other instances of 
a similar spirit ; and his sole claim to immortality, like that 
of many an other, is founded upon his impudence. 



OF ST. AUGUSTINE, FLORIDA. 19 



CHAPTER IV. 

THE ATTACK ON FORT CAEOLINE— 1565. 

The troops, having heard mass, marched out in order, pre- 
ceded by twenty Biscayans and Asturians having as their 
captain Martin de Ochoa, a leader of great fidelity and bra- 
very, furnished with axes to open a road where they could 
not get along. At this moment there arrived two Indians, 
who said that they had been at the fort six days before, and 
who "seemed like angels " to the soldiers, sent to guide 
their march. Halting for refreshment and rest wherever 
suitable places could be found, and the Adelantado always 
with the vanguard, in four days they reached the vicinity of 
the fort, and came up within less than a quarter of a league 
of it, concealed by a grove of pine trees. It rained heavily, 
and a severe storm prevailed. The place where they had 
halted was a very bad one, and very marshy ; but he deci- 
ded to stop there, and went back to seek the rearguard, lest 
they might lose the way. 

About ten at night the last of the troops arrived, very 
wet indeed, for there had been much rain during the four 
days ; they had passed marshes with the water rising to their 
waists, and every night there was so great a flood that they 
were in great danger of losing their powder, their match- 
flre, and their biscuit ; and they became desperate, cursing 
those who had brought them there, and themselves for 
coming. 

Menendez pretended not to hear their complaints, not 
daring to call a council as to proceeding or returning, for 
both officers and soldiers went forward very inquietly. Re- 
maining firm in his own resolve, two hours before dawn he 
called together the Master of the Camp and the Captains to 
whom he said that during the whole night he had sought of 
God and his most Holy Mother that they would favor him 
and instruct him what he should do most advantageous for 
their holy service; and he was persuaded that they had all 
done the same. "But now, Gentlemen," he proceeded, 
" we must make some determination, finding ourselves ex- 



20 THE HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES 

hausted, lost, without ammnnition or provisions, and without 
the hope of relief." 

Some answered very promptly, " Why should they waste 
their time in giving reasons ? for, unless they returned 
quickly to St. Augustine, they would be reduced to eating 
palmettos ;* and the longer they delayed, the greater trouble 
they would have." 

The Adelantado said to them that what they said seemed 
very reasonable, but he would ask of them to hear some 
reasons to the contrary, without being offended. He then 
proceeded — after having smoothed down their somewhat 
ruffled dispositions, considerably disturbed by their first ex- 
perience in encountering the hardships of such a march — to 
show them that the danger of retreat was then greater than 
an advance would be, as they would lose alike the respect 
of their friends and foes. That if, on the contrary, they 
attacked the fort, whether they succeeded in taking it or 
not, they would gain honor and reputation. 

Stimulated by the speech of their General, they demanded 
to be led to the attack, and the arrangements for the assault 
were at once made. Their French prisoner was placed in 
the advance ; but the darkness of the night and the severity 
of the storm rendered it impossible to proceed, and they 
halted in a marsh, with the water up to their knees, to await 
daylight. 

At dawn the Frenchman recognized the country, and the 
place were they were, and where stood the fort ; upon which 
the Adelantado ordered them to march, enjoining upon all, 
at the peril of their lives, to follow him ; and coming to a 
small hill, the Frenchman said that behind that stood the 
fort, about three bow-shots distant, but lower down, near 
the river. The General put the Frenchman into the custody 
of Castaneda. He went up a little higher, and saw the river 
and one of the houses, but he was not able to discover the 
fort, although it was adjoining them ; and he returned to 
Castaneda, with whom nov7 stood the Master of the Camp 
and Ochoa, and said to them that he wished to go lower 
down, near to the houses which stood behind the hill, to see 
the fortress and the garrison, for, as the sun was now up, 
they could not attack the fort without a reconnoisance. 
This the Master of the Camp would not permit him to do, 
saying this duty appertained to him ; and he went alone with 
Ochoa near to the houses, from whence they discovered the 
fort; and returning with their information, they came to 

*A low palm, bearing an oily berry. 



OF ST. AUGUSTINE, FLORIDA. 21 

two paths, and leaving the one by which they came, they 
took the other. The Master of the Camp discovered his 
error, coming to a fallen tree, and turned his face to inform 
Ochoa, who was following him ; and as they turned to seek 
the right path, he stopped in advance, and the sentinel dis- 
covered them, who imagined them to be French ; but exam- 
ining them he perceived they were unknown to him. He 
hailed, "Who goes there?" Ochoa answered, "French- 
men." The sentinel was conlirmed in his supposition that 
they were his own people, and approached them ; Ochoa did 
the same ; but seeing they were not French, the sentinel 
retreated. Ochoa closed with him, and Avith his drawn 
sword gave him a cut over the head, but did not hurt him 
much, as the sentinel fended oif the blow with his sword ; 
and the Master of the Camp coming up at tliis moment;, 
gave him a thrust, from which he fell backwards, making a 
loud outcry. The Master of the Camp, putting his sword 
to his breast, threatened him with instant death unless he 
kept silence. They tied him thereupon, and took him to 
the General, who, hearing the noise, thought the Master of 
the Camp was being killed, and meeting with the Sergeant- 
major, Francisco de Recalde, Diego de Maya, and Andres 
Lopez Patino, with their standards and soldiers, without be- 
ing able to restrain himself, he cried out, " Santiago ! Upon 
them ! Help of God, Victory ! The French are destroyed. 
The Master of the Camp is in their fort, and has taken it." 
Upon which, all rushed forward in the path without order, 
the General remaining behind, repeating what he had said 
many times : himself believing it to be certain that the 
Master of the Camp had taken with him a considerable 
force, and had captured the fort. 

So great was the joy of the soldiers, and such their speed, 
that they soon came up with the Master of the Camp and 
Ochoa, who was hastening to receive the reward of carrying 
the good news to the General of the capture of the sentiueL 
But the Master of the Camp, seeing the spirit which ani- 
mated the soldiers, killed the sentinel, and cried out with a 
loud voice to those who were pressing forward, " Comrades ! 
do as I do. God is with us ;" and turned, running towards 
the fort, and meeting two Frenchmen on the way, he killed 
one of them, and Andres Lopez Patino the other. Those 
in the environs of the fort, seeing this tragedy enacted, set 
up loud outcries ; and in order to know the cause of the 
alarm, one of the Frenchmen vrithin opened the postern of 
the principal gate, which he had no sooner done than it was 



22 THE HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES 

observed by the Master of the Camp ; and throwing himself 
upon him, he killed him, and entered the gate, followed by 
the most active of his followers. 

The French, awakened by the clamor, some dressed, 
others in their night-clothes, rushed to the doors of their 
houses to see what had happened ; but they were all killed, 
except sixty of the more wary, who escaped by leaping the 
walls. 

Immediately the standards of the Sergeant-major and of 
Diego Mayo were brought in, and set up by Rodrigo Troche 
and Pedro Valdes Ilerrera, with two cavaliers, at the same 
moment. These being hoisted, the trumpets proclaimed the 
victory, and the bands of soldiers who had entered opened 
the gates and sought the quarters, leaving uo Frenchman 
alive. 

The Adelantado hearing the cries, left Castaneda in his 
place to collect the people who had not come up, who were 
at least half the force, and went himself to see if they were 
in any danger. He arrived at the fort running ; and as he 
perceived that the soldiers gave no quarter to any of the 
French, he shouted, " That at the penalty of their lives 
they should neither wound nor kill any woman, cripple, or 
child under fifteen years of age." By which seventy per- 
sons were saved ; the rest were all killed ! 

Renato de Laudonniere, the Commander of the fort, 
escaped with his serv-ant and some twenty or thirty others, 
to a vessel lying in the river. 

Such is the Spanish chronicle, contained in Barcia, of the 
capture of Fort Caroline. Its details in the main correspond 
with the account of Laudonniere, and of Nicolas Challeux, 
the author of the letter printed at Lyons, in France, under 
date of August, 1566, by Jean Saugrain. In some impor- 
tant particulars, however, the historians disagree. It has 
l^een already seen tliat Menendez is represented as having 
given orders to spare all the women, maimed persons, and 
all children under fifteen years of age. The French rela- 
tions of the event, on the contrary, allege that an indiscrimi- 
nate slaughter took plaee, and that all were massacred 
without respect to age, sex, or condition ; but as this state- 
ment is principally nuide upon the authority of a terrified 
and flying soldier, it is alike due to the probabilities of the 
case, and more agreeable to the hopes of humanity, to les- 
sen somewhat the horrors of a seene which has need of all 
the palliation that can be drawn from the slightest evidences 
of compassion on the part of that stern and bigoted leader. 



OF ST. AUGUSTINE, FLORIDA. 23 

The Spanish statement is further confirmed by other wri- 
ters, who speak of a vessel being dispatched by Menendez 
subsequently to carry the survivors to Spain. 



24 THE HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES 



CHAPTER V. 

ESCAPE OF LAUDONNIERE AND OTHERS FROM FORT CAROLINE. 
ADVENTURES OF THE FUGITIVES. 

The narratives of tins event are found singularly full, 
there being no less than three accounts by fugitives from 
the massacre. The most complete of these is that of Nicolas 
de Challeux, a native of Dieppe, which was published in 
the following year. I have largely transcribed from this 
quaint and curious narrative, not only an account of the 
fullness of the details, but also for the light it throws upon 
the habits of thought and modes of expression of that day, 
when so much was exhibited of an external religious faith, 
and so many were found who would fight for their faith 
■when they refused to adhere to its requirements. There 
are apparent, also, a close study of the Scriptures, a great 
familiarity with its language, a frequent use of its illustra- 
tions, and a disposition to attribute all things, with a 
reverent piety, to the direct personal supervision of the 
Almighty. By the aid of a map of the St. John's River, 
it will not be difficult to trace the perilous route of escape 
pursued by De Challeux and his companions, over obstacles 
much magnified by the terror of the moment and want of 
familiarity with the country: — 

" The number of persons in the fort was two hundred and forty, 
partly of those who had not recovered from sea-sickness, partly of 
artisans and of women and children left to the care and diligence of 
Captain Laudonniere, who had no expectation that it was possible that 
any force could approach by land to attack him. On which account 
the guards had withdrawn for the purpose of refreshing themselves a 
little before sunrise, on account of the bad weather which had con- 
tinued during the whole night, most of our people being at the time 
in their beds sleeping. The wicket gate open, the Spanish force, 
having traversed forests, swamps, and rivers, arrived at break of day, 
Friday, the 20th September, the weather very stormy, and entered 
the fort without any resistance, and made a horrible satisfaction of 
the rage and hate they had conceived against our nation. It was 
then who should best kill the most men, sick and well, women and 
little children, in such a manner that it is impossible to conceive of a 
massacre which could equal this for its barbarity and cruelty. 



OF ST. AUGUSTINE, FLORIDA. 25 

"Some of the more active of our people, jumping from their beds, 
slipped out and escaped to the vessel in the river. I was myself sur- 
prised, going to my duty with my clasp-knife in my hand; for upon 
leaving my cabin, I met the enemy, and saw no other means of escape 
but turning my back, and making the utmost possible haste to lead 
over the palisades, for I was closely pursued, step by step, by a pike- 
man and one with a partisan ; and I do not know how it was, unless 
by the grace of God, that my strength was redoubled, old man as I 
am and grey-headed, a thing which at any other time I could not have 
done, for the rampart was raised eight or nine feet; I then hastened 
to secrete myself in the woods, and when I was sufficiently near the 
edge of the wood at the distance of a good bow-shot, I turned towards 
the fort and rested a little time, finding myself not pursued; and as 
from this place all the fort, even the inner-court was distinctly visible 
to me, looking there I saw a horrible butchery of our men taking place, 
and three standards of our enemies planted upon the ramparts. Having 
then lost all hope of seeing our men rally, I resigned all my senses to 
the Lord. Recommending myself to his mercy, grace and favor, I 
threw myself into the wood, for it seemed to me that I could find no 
greater cruelty among the savage beast, than that of our enemy which 
I had seen shown towards our people. But the misery and anguish in 
which I found myself then, straitened and oppressed, seeing no longer 
any means of safety upon the earth, unless by a special grace of our 
Lord, transcending any expectation of man, caused me to utter groans 
and sobs, and with a voice broken by distress to thus cry to the Lord : 

" ' God of our fathers and Lord of all mercy ! who hast commanded 
us to call upon Thee even from the depths of hell and the shades of 
death, promising forthwith thy aid and succor ! show me, for the hope 
which I have in Thee, what course I ought to take to come to the 
termination of this miserable old age, plunged into the gulf of grief 
and bitterness; at least, cause that, feeling the efi'ect of Thy mercy, 
and the confidence which I have conceived in my heart for Thy 
promises, they may not be snatched from me through fear of savage 
and furious wild beasts on one hand, and of our and Thy enemies on 
the other, who desire the more to injure us for the memory of Thy 
name which is invoked by us than for any other cause ; aid me, my 
God! assist me, for I am so troubled that I can do nothing more.' 

" And while I was making this prayer, traversing the wood, which 
was very thick and matted with briars and thorns, beneath the large 
trees where there was neither any road nor path, scarcely had I trailed 
my way half an hour, when I heard a noise like men weeping and 
groaning near me; and advancing in the name of God, and in the 
confidence of His succor, I discovered one of our people, named Sieur 
de la Blonderie, and a little behind him another, named Maitre Robert, 
well known to us all, because he had in charge the prayers at the fort. 

" Immediately afterwards ^we found also the servant of Sieur d'Ully, 
the nephew of M. Lebreau, Master Jaques Trusse, and many others; 
and we assembled and talked over our troubles, and deliberated as to 
what course we could take to save our lives. One of our number, 



26 THE HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES 

much esteemed as being very learned in the lessons of Holy Scripture, 
proposed after this manner : ' Brethren, we see to what extremity 
we are brought ; in whatever direction we turn our eyes, we see only 
barbarism. The heavens, the earth, the sea, the forest, and men, — in 
brief, nothing favors us. How can we know that if we yield to the 
mercy of the Spaniards, they will spare us? and if they should kill us, 
it will be the suffering of but a moment; they are men, and it may be 
that, their fury appeased, they may receive us upon some terms; and, 
moreover, what can we do ? Would it not be better to fall into 
the hands of men, than into the jaws of wild beasts, or die of hunger 
in a strange land ? ' 

''After he had thus spoken, the greater part of our number were of 
his opinion, and praised his counsel. Notwithstanding, I pointed out 
the cruel animosity still unappeased of our enemies, and that it was 
not for any human cause of quarrel, that they had carried out with 
such fury their enterprise, but mainly (as would appear by the notice 
they had already given us) because we were of those who were re- 
formed by the preaching of the Gospel ; that we should be cowards to 
trust in men, rather than in God, who gives life to his own in the 
midst of death, and gives ordinarily his assistance when the hopes of 
men entirely fail. 

"I also brought to their minds examples from Scripture, instancing 
Joseph, Daniel, Elias, and the other prophets, as well also the apostles, 
as St. Peter and St. Paul, who were all drawn out of much affliction, 
as would appear by means extraordinary and strange to the reason and 
judgment of men. His arm, said I, is not shortened, nor in any wise 
enfeebled; his power is always the same. Do you not recollect, said I 
the flight of the Israelites before Pharaoh? What hope had that 
people of escaping from the hands of that powerful tyrant? He had 
them, as it were, under his heel. Before them they had the sea, on 
either side inaccessible mountains. 

" What then ? He who opened the sea to make a path for his 
people, and made it afterwards to swallow up his enemies, can not he 
conduct us by the forest places of this strange country? While thus 
discoursing, six of the company followed out the first proposition, and 
abandoned us to go and yield themselves up to our enemies, hoping to 
find favor before them. But they learned, immediately and by 
experience, what folly it is to trust more in men than in the promise 
of the Lord. For having gone out of the wood, as they descended to 
the fort they were immediately seized by the Spaniards and treated in 
the same fashion as the others had been. They were at once killed 
and massacred, and then drawn to the banks of the river, where the 
others killed at the fort lay in heaps. We who remained in the wood 
continued to make our way, and drawing towards the sea, as well as we 
could judge, and as it pleased God to conduct our paths and to straiten 
our course, we soon arrived at the brow of a mountain and from there 
commenced to see the sea, but it was still at a great distance; and 
what was worse, the road we had to take showed itself wonderfully 
strange and difficult. In the first place, the mountain from which it 



OF ST. AUGUSTINE, FLORIDA. 27 

was necessary for us to descend, was of such height and ruggedness, 
that it was not possible for a person descending to stand upright; and 
we should never have dared to descend it but for the hope we had of 
sustaining ourselves by the branches of the bushes, which were 
frequent upon the side of the mountain, and to save life, not sparing 
our hands which we had all gashed up and bloody, and even the legs 
and nearly all the body was torn. But descending from the mountain, we 
did not lose our view of the sea, on account of a small wood which 
was upon a little hill opposite to us; and in order to go to the wood it 
was requisite that we should traverse a large meadow, all mud and 
quagmire, covered with briars and other kind of strange plants; for 
the stalk was as hard as wood, and the leaves pricked our feet and our 
hands until the blood came, and being all the while in water up to the 
middle, which redoubled our pain and suflFering. The rain came down 
upon us in such manner from heaven, that we were during all that 
time between two floods; and the further we advanced the deeper we 
found the water. 

"And then thinking that the last period of our lives had come, we 
all embraced each other, and with a common impulse, we commenced 
to sigh and cry to the Lord, accusing our sins and recognizing the 
weight of his judgment upon us. 'Alas! Lord,' said we, 'what are 
we but poor worms of the earth ? Our souls weakened by grief, sur- 
render themselves into thy hands. Oh, Father of Mercy and God of 
Love, deliver us from this pain of death ! or if thou wilt that in this 
desert we shall draw our last breath, assist us so that death, of all 
things the most terrible, shall have no advantage over us, but that we 
may remain firm and stable in the sense of thy favor and good-will, 
which we have too often experienced in the cause of thy Christ to 
give way to the spirit of Satan, the spirit of despair and of distrust; 
for if we die, we will protest now before thy Majesty, that we would 
die unto thee, and that if we live it may be to recount thy wonders in 
the midst of the assembly of thy servants.' Our prayers concluded, 
we marched with great difficulty straight towards the wood, when we 
came to a great river which ran in the midst of this meadow; the 
channel was sufficiently narrow but very deep, and ran with great force, 
as though all the field ran toward the sea. This was another addition 
to our anguish, for there was not one of our men who would dare 
to undertake to cross over by swimming. But in this confusion of our 
thoughts, as to what manner to pass over, I bethought myself of the 
wood which we had left behind us. After exhorting my comrades to 
patience and a continued trust in the Lord, I returned to the wood, 
and cut a long pole, with the good size clasp knife which remained in 
my hand from the hour the fort was taken; and I returned to the 
others, who awaited me in great perplexity. ' Now, then, comrades,' 
said I, 'let us see if God, by means of this stick, will not give us 
some help to accomplish our path.' Then we laid the pole upon the 
water, and each one by turn taking hold of the end of the pole, carried 
it by his side to the midst of the channnel, when losing sight of him 
we pushed him with sufficient force to the other bank, where he drew 



28 THE HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES 

himself out by the canes and other bushes growing along its borders; and 
by his example we passed over, one at a time; but it was not without 
great danger, and not without drinking a great deal of salt water, in such 
manner that our hearts were all trembling, and we were as much over- 
come as though we had been half drowned. After we had come to 
ourselves and had resumed courage, moving on all the time towards 
the wood, which we had remarked close to sea, the pole was not even 
needed to pass another creek, which gave us not much less trouble than 
the first; but by the grace of God, we passed it and entered the wood 
the same evening, where we passed the night in great fear and 
trembling, standing about against the trees. 

"And, as much as we had labored, even had it been more, we felt 
no desire to sleep; for what repose could there be to spirits in such 
mortal aifright? Near the break of day, we saw a great beast, like a 
deer, at fifty paces from us, who had a great head, eyes flaming, the 
ears hanging, and the higher parts elevated. It seemed to us mon- 
strous, because of its gleaming eyes, wondrously large ; but it did not 
come near us to do us any harm. 

" The day having appeared, we went out of the wood and returned to- 
wards the sea, in which we hoped, after Grod, as the only means of saving 
our lives; but we were again cast down and troubled, for we saw before 
us a country of marsh and muddy quagmires, full of water and 
covered with briars, like that we had passed the previous day. We 
marched across this salt marsh; and, in the direction we had to take, 
we perceived among the briars a body of men, whom we at first thought 
to be enemies, who had gone there to cut us off"; but upon close obser- 
vation, they seemed in as sad a plight as ourselves, naked and terrified ; 
and we immediately perceived that they were our own people. It was 
Captain Laudonniere, his servant-maid, Jacques Morgues of Dieppe 
(the artist), Francis Duval of Rouen, son of him of the iron crown 
of Rouen, Niguise de la Cratte, Nicholas the carpenter, the Trum- 
peter of Sieur Laudonniere, and others, who all together made the 
number of twenty-six men. Upon deliberating as to what we should 
do, two of our men mounted to the top of one of the tallest trees and dis- 
covered from thence one of our vessels, which was that of Captain 
Maillard, to whom they gave a signal, that he might know that we 
were in want of help. Thereupon he came towards us with his small 
vessel, but in order to reach the banks of the stream, it was necessary 
for us to traverse the briars and two other rivers similar to those which 
we passed the previous day; in order to accomplish which, the pole I 
had cut the day before was both useful and necessary, and two others 
which Sr. de Laudonniere had provided ; and we came pretty near to the 
vessel, but our hearts failed us from hunger and fatigue, and we should 
have remained where we were unless the sailors had given us a hand, 
which aid was very opportune; and they carried us, one after the 
other, to the vessel, on board of which we were all received well and 
kindly. They gave us bread and water, and we began afterwards, little 
by little, to recover our strength and vigor; which was a strong reason 
that we should recognize the goodness of the Lord, who had saved us 



OF ST. AUGUSTINE, FLORIDA. 29 

against all Lope from an infinity of dangers and from death, by which 
we had been surrounded and assaulted from all quarters, to render him 
forevermore our thanks and praises. We thus passed the entire night 
recounting the wonders of the Lord, and consoled each other in the 
assurances of our safety. 

"Daylight having come, Jacques Ribault, Captain of the Pearl, 
boarded us to confer with us respecting what was to done by us, and 
what means we should take for the safety of the rest of our men and 
the vessels. It was then objected, the small quanity of provisions 
which we had, our strength broken, our munitions and means of de- 
fense taken from us, the uncertainty as to the condition of our 
Admiral, and not knowing but that he had been shipwrecked on some 
coast a long distance from us, or driven to a distance by the tempest. 

" We thereupon concluded that we could do no better than return 
to France, and were of the opinion that the company should divide 
into two parts, the one remaining on board the Pearl, the other under 
charge of Captain Maillard. 

" On Friday, the twenty-fifth day of the month of September, we 
departed from this coast, favored by a strong northerly wind, having 
concluded to return to France, and after the first day our two ships 
were so far separated that we did not again encounter each other. 

" We proceeded five hundred leagues prosperously, when, one 
morning about sunrise, we were attacked by a Spanish vessel, which 
we met as well as we could, and cannonaded them in such sort that we 
made them subject to our disposal, and battered them so that the blood was 
seen to overrun the scuppers. We held them then as surrendered and 
defeated; but there was no means of grappling her, on account of the 
roughness of the sea, for in grappling her there would be danger of 
our striking together, which might have sunk us; she also, satisfied 
with the affair, left us, joyful and thanking God that no one of us was 
wounded or killed in this skirmish except our cook. 

"The rest of our passage was without any renconter with ene- 
mies; but we were much troubled by contrary winds, which often 
threatened to cast us on the coast of Spain, which would have been 
the finishing touch to our misfortunes, and the thing of which we had 
the greatest horror. We also endured at sea many other things, such 
as cold and hunger ; for be it understood that we, who escaped from 
the land of Florida, had nothing else for vestment or equipment, by 
day or by night, except our shirts alone, or some other little rag, which 
was a small matter of defence from the exposure to the weather; and 
what was more, the bread which we eat, and we eat it very sparingly, 
was all spoilt and rotten, as well also the water itself was all noisome, 
and of which, besides, we could only have for the whole day a single 
small glass. 

"This bad food was the reason, on our landing, that many of us fell 
into divers maladies, which carried off many of the men of our com- 
pany; and we arrived at last, after this perilous and lamentable 
voyage, at Rochelle; where we were received and treated very hu- 
manely and kindly by the inhabitants of the country and those of the 



60 THE HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES 

city, giving us of their means, to the extent our necessities require; 
and assisted by their kindness we were each enabled to return to his 
own part of the country." * 

Laudonniere'sf narrative speaks more of his own per- 
sonal escape ; and that of Le Moyne| refers to this descrip- 
tion of De Challeux, as containing a full and accurate account 
of what took place. Barcia mentions De Challeux, very 
contemptuously as a carpenter, who succeeding badly at his 
trade, took up that of preaching, but does not deny the truth 
of his narrative. 

Those who separated from their comrades and threw 
themselves upon the enemies' mercy, are mentioned by the 
Spanish writers ; but they are silent as to the treatment 
they received. 

*Ternaux Complins. fHakluyt. J Brevis Narratio. 



OF ST. AUGUSTINE, FLORIDA. 31 



CHAPTER VI. 

SITE OF FORT CAROLINE, AFTERWARDS CALLED SAN MATTEO. 

It might naturally be supposed that a spot surrounded 
with so many thrilling and interesting associations, as the 
scene of the events we have just related, would have been 
commemorated either by tradition or by ancient remains 
attesting its situation. But, in truth, no recognized point 
now bears the appellation of Fort Caroline, and the anti- 
quary can point at this day to no fosse or parapet, no 
crumbling bastion, no ancient helm or buckler, no shattered 
and corroded garniture of war mingled with the bones of 
the dead, as evidencing its position. 

A writer who has himself done more to rescue from ob- 
livion the historical romance of the South than any other,* 
has well said, "It will be an employment of curious interest, 
whenever the people of Florida shall happen upon thetrue 
site of the settlement and structure of Laudonniere, to 
trace out in detail these several localities, and fix them for 
the benefit of posterity. The work is scarcely beyond the 
hammer and chisel of some Old Mortality, who has learned 
to place his atfectious and fix his sympathies upon the 
achievements of the past." 

"With a consciousness of our unfitness to establishabso- 
lutely a memorial so interesting as the site of Fort Caroline 
must ever be, I shall endeavor to locate its position, upon 
the basis of reasons entirely satisfactory to myself, and 
measurably so, I trust, to others. 

The account given by Laudonniere himself, the leader of 
the Huguenots, by whom Fort Caroline was constructed, is 
as follows : — After speaking of his arrival at the mouth of 
the river, which had been named the River May by Ribault, 
w^ho had entered it on the first day of May, 1562, and had 
therefore given it that name, he says, "Departing from 
thence, I had not sailed three leagues up the river, still 
being followed by the Indians, crying still, 'amy,' 'amy,' 
that is to say, friend, but I discovered an hill of meane 

*"W. Gilmore Simms, Esq. 



32 THE HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES 

height, neare which I went on land, harde by the fieldes 
that were sowed with mil, at one corner whereof there was 
an house, built for their lodgings which keep and garde 
the mil. ****** Now was I determined to 
searche out the qualities of the hill. Therefore I went 
right to the toppe thereof; where we found nothing else but 
cedars, palms, and bay trees of so sovereign odor thatBalme 
smelleth not more sweetly. The trees were environed 
around about with vines bearing grapes, in such quantities 
that the number would suffice to make the place habitable. 
Besides the fertilitie of the soyle for vines, one may see 
mesquine wreathed about the trees in great quantities. 
Touching the pleasure of the place, the sea may be seen 
plain enough from it; and more than six great leagues off, 
towards the River Belle, a man may behold the meadows, 
divided asunder into isles and islet, enterlacing one another. 
Briefly, the place is so pleasent, that those which are mel- 
ancholicke, would be inforced to change their humour. * * 

"Our fort was built in form of a triangle; the side to- 
wards the west, which was towards the land, was inclosed 
with a little trench and raised with turf made in the form 
of a battlement, nine feet high ; the other side, which was 
towards the river, was enclosed with a palisade of planks of 
timber, after the manner that Gabions are made ; on the 
south line, there was a kind of bastion, within which I 
caused an house for the munition to be made. It was all 
builded with fagots and sand, saving about two or three 
foote high, with turfes whereof the battlements were made. 
In the middest, I caused a great court to be made of 
eighteen paces long, and the same in breadth. In the mid- 
dest whereof, on the one side, drawing towards the south, 
I builded a corps de garde and an house on the other side 
towards the north. * * * * One of the sides that in- 
closed my court, whichi I made very faire and large, reached 
unto the grange of my munitions; and on the other side, 
towards the river, was mine own lodgings, round which 
were galleries all covered. The principal doore of my 
lodging was in the middest of the great place, and the 
other was towarde the river. A good distance from the 
fort I built an oven." 

Jacob Le Moyne, or Jacques Morgues, as he is sometimes 
called, accompanied the expedition ; and his Brevis Narratio 
contains two plates, representing the commencement of the 
construction of Fort Caroline, and its appearance when 
completed. The latter represents a much more finished 



OF ST. AUGUSTINE, FLORIDA. 33 

fortification than could possibly have been constructed, but 
may be taken as a correct outline, I presume, of its general 
appearance. 

Barcia, in his account of its capture, describes neither its 
shape nor appearance, but mentions the parapet nine feet 
high, and the munition house and store house. 

From the account of Laudonniere and Le Mojme, it was 
situated near the river, on the slope or nearly at the foot of 
a hill.* Barcia speaks of its being behind a hill, and of 
descending towards it. The clerical-carpenter, Challeux, 
speaks of being able, after his escape, to look down from 
the hill he was on, into the court of the fort itself, and 
seeing the massacre of the French. As he was flying from 
the fort towards the sea, and along the river, and as the 
Spaniards came from a southeast direction, the fort must 
have been on the westerly side of a hill, near the river. 

The distance is spoken of as less than three leagues by 
Laudonniere. Hawkins and Ribault say, the fort was not 
visible from the mouth of the river. It is also incidentally 
spoken of in Barcia as being two leagues from the bar. 
De Challeux, in the narrative of his escape, speaks of the 
distance as being about two leagues. In the account given 
of the expedition of De Gourgues, it is said to be, in general 
terms, about one or two leagues above the forts afterwards 
constructed on each side ot the mouth of the river; and it 
is also mentioned in De Gourgues, that the fort was at the 
foot of a hill, near the water, and could be overlooked from 
the hill. The distance from the mouth of the river, and 
the nature of the ground Avhere the fort was built, are 
thus made sutficiently definite to enable us to seek a lo- 
cation which shall fulfill both these conditions. It is 
hardly necessary to remark that there can be no question 
but that the fort was located on the south or easterly side 
of the river, as the Spaniards marched by land from St. 
Augustine in a northwesterly direction to Fort Caroline. 

The River St. Johns is one of the largest rivers, in point 
of^ width, to be found in America, and is more like an arm 
of the sea than a river ; from its mouth for a distance of 
fifteen miles, it is spread over extensive marshes, and there 
are few points where the channel touches the banks of the 
river. At its mouth it is comparatively narrow, but im- 
mediately extends itself over wide-spread marshes ; and the 
first headland or shore which is washed by the channel is a 
place known as St. John's BlutF. Here the river runs 

* Laudonniere says, '•'•joignant la montagne.^^ 



34 THE HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES 

closely along the shore, making a bold, deep channel close 
up to the bank. The land rises abruptly on one side into a 
hill of moderate height, covered with a dense growth of 
pine, cedar, &c. T]]is hill gently slopes to the banks of the 
river, and runs off to the southwest, where, at the distance of 
arquarter of a mile, a creek discharges itself into the river, 
at a place called "the Shipyard " from time immemorial. 

I am not aware that any remains of Fort Caroline, or 
any old remains of a fortress, have ever been discovered 
here; but it must be recollected that this fort was con- 
structed of sand and pine trees, and that three hundred 
years have passed away, with their storms and tempests, 
their rains and destructive influences — a period sutiicent to 
have destroyed a work of much more durable character 
than sandy entrenchments and green pine stakes and 
timbers. Moreover, it is higly probable, judging from 
present appearances, that the constant abrasion ot the banks 
still going on has long since worn away the narrow spot where 
stood Fort Caroline. It is also to be remarked, that as 
there is no other hill, or high land, or place where a fort 
could have been built, between St. John's Bluff" and the 
mouth of the river, so it is also the fact that there is no 
point on the south side of the river where the channel touches 
high land, for a distance by water of eight or ten miles 
above St. John's Bluff. 

The evidence in favor of the location of Fort Caroline at 
St. John's Bluff' is, I think conclusive and irresistible, and 
accords in all points with the descriptions^given as to dis- 
tance, topography, and points of view. 

It is witliin the memory of persons now living, that a con- 
siderable orange grove and somewhat extensive buildings, 
which existed at this place, then called San Vicente, have 
been washed into the river, leaving at this day no vestiges 
of their existence. It has been occpuied as a Spanish fort 
within fifty years ; yet so rapid has been the work of time and 
the elements, that no remains of such occupation are now 
to be seen. 

The narratives all speak of the distance from the mouth 
of the river as about two leagues ; and in speaking of so 
short a distance the probability of exactness is much greater 
than when dealing with longer distances. 

As to the spot itself, it presents all the natural features 
mentioned by Laudonniere ; and it requires but a small spice 
of enthusiasm and romance that it be recognized as a 
"goodlie and plcasante spotte," by those who might like 



OF ST. AUGUSTINE, FLORIDA. 35 

the abundance of the wild grapes and the view of the distant 
salt meadows, with their " iles and islets, so pleasante that 
those which are melaucholike would be inforced to change 
their humour." 

It is but proper, however, to say, that at a plantation known 
as i^ewcastle there is a high range of ground, and upon 
this high ground the appearance of an old earth-workof quad- 
rangular form ; but this point is distant some six leagues 
from the mouth of the river, is flanked by a deep bay or 
marsh to the southeast, and the work is on the top of the 
hill and not at its foot, is quadrangular and not triangular, and 
is a considerable distance from the water. These earth- 
works, I am satisfied, are Spanish or English remains of a 
much later period. 

By examining a map of the St. John's river, the first pro- 
jecting land on the south side, lying east of the second 
township line marked from the coast, will be found nearly 
to indicate the point known as St. John's Bluff. On the 
eastern face the bluff is quite high and precipitous — being 
possibly the " brow of the mountain" mentioned by De 
Challeux — and immediately beyond is a deep indentation of 
the shore-line of several miles in circuit, within which is an 
immense tract of sea-marsh, interspersed with small islands, 
and cut up by narrow channels. Through this the fugitives 
may be supposed to have crossed, and, reaching the high 
lands which hem in the marsh near the mouth of the river, 
were enabled to view the vessels which oflered them rescue. 
About the year 1856 a handful of small copper coins were 
accidentally found near the eastern margin of this marsh, 
in the rear of what is noAv known as Mayport Mill. Some 
few were at first found on the ground, as if accidentally ex- 
posed, and upon removing the earth for a slight depth the 
remainder were discovered. They were distributed among 
several gentlemen in Florida, and Mr. Buckingham Smith, 
at that time and more recently made the history of the 
coins a subject of especial inquiry in Spain. 

Just before putting the second edition of this work to 
press, the following letter was received by the publisher of 
this volume, and is given as matter of interest in connec- 
tion with the locality referred to : 

Madrid, August 15, 1868. 

My Dear Sir : — I brought with me from Florida, as I proposed, 
three copper coins of those found with others of the same sort many 
years ago, on the St. Johns river near the old site of Fort Caroline, in 
what the French three centuries ago called the Vale of Laudonniere, 



36 THE HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES 

that I might have them examined in Europe. There were none of the 
sort in the British Museum, with which they might be compared, and 
in the Bibliothique Imperial I could only learn that they were Spanish. 
On my arrival here I gave them for inspection to Senor Bermudez, a 
long time in charge of the national collection of such like antiquities, 
second only in extent and value to that of Paris : and showed them 
also to other of my friends learned in numismatics. The work of A. 
Heiss, now making its appearance in numbers, with the title Descrip- 
tion General de las monedas flisjjano — Christianas desdc la invasion 
de los Arabes, has been also consulted, and this is the amount of all 
the conclusions, the inscriptions on each coin being nearly the same : 

t KAROLVS.ET.IOANNA RE. 

Two II in the midst, with crowns upon them ; to the right P, to the left S ; 
in the middle a square point. 

REVERSO : 

Same — same — same — REGIS. 
A Y in the middle, crowned ; to the right IIII ; to the left F. 

They were struck for Dona Juana and Carlos I., Empr. Charles V., 
between the years 1516 and 1555. The Y is supposed to refer to Ysa- 
bel : the double I to Joanna I., or may be to the columns of Hercules, 
and the crowns upon them to those of Castilla and Aragon. On later 
silver coins, not so rude, the columns are placed with the words plus 
ultra, as you may have observed on a Spanish dollar. The IIII (on 
some 4,) means four maravedises, the value of which have varied : at 
present 25 of these would be the value of a real. These coins are un- 
common ; in good preservation, very rare. The curiosity so many of 
us have had for a number of years about these matters, I believe is at 
last satisfied. 

I have visited the town of Aviles, a league from the Bay of Biscay, 
whence Pedro Menendez came, and brought his fleet to Florida, three 
centuries ago. I saw his tomb, and not far oft' the chapel of the family 
of one of his companions. There is no stranger any where to be heard 
of in all that country ; every thing is intensely and old Spanish iu 
every aspect. Groing home late one evening, I was accosted by a na- 
tive in good Euglish. He said the town was rarely visited — three or 
four Englishmen within his memory had passed through, and he suppo- 
sed me to be the first person from the United States who had ever been 
there. I told him I came from Florida, and, though rather late, was 
returning the visit of Menendez to St. Augustine. 

The estate of this old colonist is in the house of the Count of Ca- 
nalejas, held by the Marquis of San Estevan, who is also by marriage 
the Count of lievilla Gigedo. I called on him at his country seat in 
Dania, and, detaining me to spend the day with him, gave orders to 
have his family pictures and palace shown to me at Gijon, and his pa- 
pers at a residence in Oviedo. Among the documents is a valuable one 
for writing a life of Menendez. It is a draft for a letter in his own 
hand, directed to his nephew. Governor of Florida, in which he ex- 
presses his wish to be with him and away from business. He speaks 
of the " invincible armada " whioh be had been appointed to com- 



OF ST. AUGUSTINE, FLORIDA. 37 

rnand, and gives the number of his ships. This probably was the last 
thing he ever wrote, dated tea days before he died, as it is known that 
he died on the ninth day of his sickness. Of course I have a copy to 
show you. 

Spain has greatly changed within the last eight years — impoverished 
itself, the people say, with improvements. The railroads traverse most 
parts, are well laid, durable, and the service good. The ancient mon- 
uments have begun to be cared for, are repaired, and in the charge of 
a commission of the government. 

Grive my best regards to friends about you, and believe me truly 
yours, BUCKINaHAM SMITH. 

Mr. Columbus Drew, Jacksonville, Fla. 



38 THE HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES 



CHAPTER VII. 

MENENDEZ'S KETURN TO ST. AUGUSTINE— SHIPWEECK O 
EIBAULT— MASSACEE OF PAET OF HIS COMMAND— 

A. D. 1565. 

After an ineffectual attempt to induce those in the small 
vessels of the French to surrender, failing in this, the Gen- 
eral concluded to return to St. Augustine, and send two of 
his vessels to the mouth of the river to intercept them. 

Some of the fugitives from the fort fled to the Indians ; 
and ten of these were given up to the Spaniards, to be 
butchered in cold blood, says the French account, — to be 
sent back to France, says the Spanish chronicle. 

The 24th September being the day of St. Matthew, the 
name of the fort was changed to that of San Matheo, by 
which name it Avas always subsequently called by the Span- 
iards ; and the name of St. Matthew was also given by them 
to the river, now called St. Johns, on which it is situated. 

The Spaniards proceeded at once to strengthen the for- 
tress, deepening and enlarging the ditch, and raised and 
strengthened the ramparts and walls in such manner, says 
the boastful Mendoza, "that if the half of all France had 
come to attack it, they could not have disturbed it ;" a boast 
upon wdiich the easy conquest of it by De Gourgues, three 
years subsequently, affords an amusing commentary. They 
also constructed, subsequently, two small forts at the month 
of the river, one on each side, which probably were located 
the one at Batten Island and the other at Mayport. 

Leaving three hundred soldiers as a garrison under his 
son-in-law, De Valdez, Master of the Camp, who was now 
appointed Govenor of the fort, Menendez marched for St. 
Augustine, beginning now to feel considerable anxiety lest 
the French fleet, escaping from the tempest, might return 
and visit upon his own garrison at St. Augustine, the fate of 
Fort Caroline. He took with him upon his return but fifty 
soldiers, and, owing to the swollen waters, found great difii- 
culty in retracing his route. When within a league of St. 
Augustine, he allowed one of the soldiers to go forward to 
announce his victory and safe return. 



OF ST. AUGUSTINE, FLORIDA. 39 

The garrison at St. Augustine had been in great anxiety 
respecting their leader, and from the accounts given by those 
who had deserted, they had feared the total loss of the ex- 
pedition. The worthy Chaplain thus describes the return 
of Meuendez : — 

" The same day, being Monday, we saw a man coming, crying out 
loudly. I myself was the first to run to him for the news. He em- 
braced me with transport, crying ' Victory ! Victory ! The French 
fort is ours.' I promised him the present which the bearer of good 
news deserves, and gave him the best in my power. 

" At the hour of vespers our good Gleneral ai-rived, with fifty foot 
soldiers, very much fiitigued. As soon as I learned that he was com- 
ing, I ran home and put on a new soutain, the best which I had, and a 
surplice, and going out with a crucifix in my hand, I went forward to 
receive him ; and he, a gentleman and a good Christian, before enter- 
ing kneeled and all his followers, and returned thanks to the Lord for 
the great favours which he had received. My companions and myself 
marched in front in procession, so that we all returned with the greatest 
^demonstrations of joy.'' 

When about to dispatch the two vessels in his harbor to 
the St. John's, to cut oft' the French vessels he had left there, 
he was informed that two sail had already been seen to pass 
the bar, supposed to contain the French fugitives. 

Eight days after the capture of Fort Caroline, a fire broke 
out in the quarters of St, Augustine, which destroyed much 
treasure and provisions, and the origin of which was doubt- 
ful, whether to be ascribed to accident or design. Much 
dissatisfaction prevailed among the officers and soldiers, and 
the fire was looked upon with pleasure by some, as having 
a tendency to hasten their departure from a spot which 
offered few temptations or rewards, compared to Mexico or 
Peru. 

On the very day of Menendez's return, a Frenchman was 
discovered by a fishing party on Anastasia Island, who, be- 
ing taken, said he was one of a party of eighteen, sent in a 
small vessel, some days before, to reconnoitre the Spanish 
position ; that they had been unable to keep the sea, and had 
been throv»^n ashore, about four leagues below, at the mouth 
of a river ; that the Indians attacked and killed three of 
their number, and they thereupon escaped. 

Menendez dispatched a captain and fifty men, to get off 
the vessel and capture any of the French who might be 
found. On their arrival at the place, they found that all the 
French had been killed by the Indians ; but they succeeded 
in getting oft the vessel. Menendez, feeling uneasy in ref- 
erence to their encounter with the Indians, had followed on 



40 THE HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES 

after the expedition, in company with the worthy Chaplain, 
to whom his promenade among the briars, vines, prickly 
cedars, chaparral, and prickly pears of Anastasia, seems to 
have been a true via dolorosa. 

Upon their arrival, they found a considerable body of 
French upon the south side of an inlet, whose fires indicated 
their position. 

The four vessels of Ribault, which had gone in pursuit 
of the Spaniards at St. Augustine, had been overtaken by 
the storm, and after keeping to sea. with incredible effort, 
had been finallj^ driven ashore upon the shoals of Canaveral,* 
with but little loss of life but a total loss of every thing 
else ; they were thus thrown on shore without shelter from 
the elements, famished with hunger, borne down by disap- 
pointment, and utterly dispirited and demoralized. They 
were consumed, also, by the most painful uncertainity. 
Marching to the northward along shore, they discovered a 
skiff", and resolved to send a small number of persons in it, 
to make their way by sea to Fort Caroline, to bring succor 
to them from there. This boat succeeded in reaching the 
St. John's, where they were informed, by friendly Indians, 
of the fate which had befallen the fort ; and subsequently 
they fell in with a Frenchman who had escaped, who related 
to them the whole disaster. Upon this they concluded to 
seek their own safety among the friendly Indiaiis of St. 
Helena, rather than to be the useless bearers of the tidings 
of their misfortunes to their companions in arms. 

There are several accounts of the sad fate which befel the 
followers of Ribault, the massacre of whom has been per- 
petuated by the memorial name given to its scene, "the 
bloody river of Matanzas," the ebb and flow of whose re- 
curring tides for three hundred years have failed to wash 
out the record of blood which has associated this massacre 
of the Huguenots with the darkest scenes of earth's history. 
In consequence of the rank and number of the victims, the 
event produced various and somewhat contradictory ac- 
counts ; but all stamped with a seal of reprobation and execra- 
tion the act and the actors, without reference to creed or na- 
tiomxlity. Challeux relates instances of cruel barbarity added 
to the atrocity of slaughter itself; and others, it appears, 
had given other versions, all in different degree pointing the 
linger of historic justice to mark and commeihorate the 
crime against humanity. 

* Canaveral, where Kibault was wrecked, must have been some point 
north of Mosquito Inlet, and not the cape now bearing that name, as lie 
could not have crossed Mosquito Inlet in his march to Matanzas. 



OF ST. AUGUSTINE, FLORIDA. 41 

The Spanisli historian, Barcia, aims to counteract this 
general condemnation, of which in his own language he 
says, " These calumnies, repeated in so many quarters, have 
sullied the fame of the Adelantado, being exaggerated by 
the heretics, and consented to by the Catholics, so that even 
the Father Felix Briot, in his annals, says that he caused 
them to be killed contrary to the faith which he had given 
them ; -which is altogether a falsehood, for the Adelantado 
did not give his word, nor would he when asked give it, to 
spare their lives, although they were willing to jjay him for 
doing so ; nor in the capture of Fort Caroline did he do 
more than has been related ; and such is the account given 
by Doctor Salis de las Meras, brother-in-law to Donna Maria 
de Salis, wife of the Adelantado, who was present, and who, 
relating the punishment of the heretics, and the manner in 
which it was accomplished, says, — 

" ' The Adelantado occupied himself in fortifying his set- 
tlement at St. Augustine, as well as he could, to defend it 
from the French fleet if they should attack it. Vpon the 
following day some Indians came and by signs informed 
them that four leagues distant there were a large number of 
Christians, who were unable to cross an arm qf the sea or 
strait, which is a river upon the inner side of an inlet, which 
they were obliged to cross in order to come to St. Augus- 
tine. The Adelantado sent thither forty soldiers about dusk, 
and arrived about midnight near the inlet, where he com- 
manded a halt until morning, and leaving his soldiers con- 
cealed, he ascended a tree to see what was the state of mat- 
ters. He discovered many persons on the other side of the 
river, and their standards ; and to prevent their passing 
over, he directed his men to exhibit themselves towards the 
shore, so that it might be supposed that he had with him a 
large force; and when they were discovered, a French sol- 
dier swam over, and said that the persons beyond the river 
were Frenchmen, that they had been wrecked in a storm, 
but had all saved their lives. The Adelantado asked what 
French they were? He answered, that they were two hun- 
dred of the people under command of Jean Ribault, Viceroy 
and Captain General of this country for the king of the 
French. He asked again, if they were Catholics or Luthe- 
rans ? It was replied that they were all Lutherans, of the 
new religion ; all of which was previously well known to 
the Adelantado, when he encountered their fleet with his 
vessels ; and the women and children whom he had spared 
when he took their fort, had also so informed him ; and he 



42 THE HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES 

had found in the fort when he took it, six trunks filled with 
books, well bound and gilt; all of which were of the new 
sect, and from which they did not say mass, but preached 
their Lutheran doctrines every evening ; all of which books 
he directed to be burnt, not sparing a single one. 

" ' The Adelantado then asked him why he had come 
over ? He said he had been sent over by his Captain, to see 
what people they were. The General asked if he wished to 
return. He said, " Yes, but he desired to know what peo- 
ple they were." This man spoke very plainly, for he was a 
Gascon of San Juan de Suz. "Then tell him," said the 
Adelantado, "that it is the Viceroy and Captain General of 
this country for the king, Don Philip ; and that his name is 
Pedro Menendez, and that he is here with some of his sol- 
diery to ascertain what people those were, for he had been 
informed the day before that they were there, and the hour 
at which they came." 

" ' The French soldier went over with his message, and 
immediately returned, saying "that if they would pledge 
faith to his captain and to four other gentlemen, they would 
like to come and treat with him ;" and they desired the loan 
of a boat, which the General had directed to bring some 
provisions to the river. The General instructed the mes- 
senger to say to his captain, "that he might come over 
securely under the pledge of his word," and then sent 
over for them the boat ; and they crossed over. The Ade- 
lantado received them very well, with only ten of his fol- 
lowers ; the others he directed to stay some distance off 
among some bushes, so that their number might appear to 
be greater than it was. One of the Frenchmen announced 
'himself as captain of these people; and that in a great storm 
they had lost four galleons, and other vessels of the king of 
France, within a distance of twenty leagues of each other; 
and that these were the people from on board of one ship, 
and that they desired they would let them have a boat for 
this arm of the sea, and for another four leagues hence, 
which was at St. Augustine; that they desired to go to a 
fort which they held twenty leagues from there. It was the 
same fort which Menendez had taken. The Adelantado 
asked them "if they were Catholics or Lutherans?" He 
replied "that they were all of the New Religion." Then 
the Adelantado said to them, " Gentlemen, your fort is 
taken and its people destroyed, except the women, and chil- 
dren under fifteen years of age ; and that you may be as- 
sured of this, among the soldiers who are here there are 



^ OF ST. AUGUSTINE, FLORIDA. 43 

many things, and also there are here two Frenchmen whom 
I have brought with me, who said they were Catholics. Sit 
down here and eat, and I will send the two Frenchmen to 
you, as also the things which some of my soldiers have taken 
from the fort, in order that you may be satisfied. 

'"The Adelantado having spoken thus, directed food to 
be given to them, and sent the two Frenchmen to them, and 
many things which the soldiers had brought from the fort, 
that they might see them, and then retired himself, to eat 
with his own people; and an hour afterwards, when he saw 
that the French had eaten, he went where they were and 
asked if they were satisfied of the truth of what he had told 
them. They said they were, and desired that for a consid- 
eration, he should give them vessels and ships' stores, that 
they might return to France. The Adelantado answered, 
" that he would do so with great pleasure if they were good 
Catholics, or if he had the ^hips for them ; but he had not 
the vessels, having sent two to St. Matteo (Ft. Caroline), the 
one to take the artillery they had captured, and the French 
women and children, to St. Domingo, and to obtain provi- 
sions. The other had to go upon business of his Majesty to 
other parts. 

" ' The French captain replied, " that he should grant to 
all, their lives, and that they should remain with him until 
they could obtain shipping for France, since they were not 
at war, and the kings of Spain and of France were brothers 
and friends." The Adelantado said, "that was true, and 
Catholics and friends he would favor, believing that he 
would serve both kings in doing so ; but as to themselves, 
being of the new sect, he held them for enemies, and he 
would wage war upon them even to blood and to fire ; and 
that he would pursue them with all cruelty wherever he 
should encounter them, in whatever sea or land where he 
should be viceroy or captain general for his king ; and that 
he would go and plant the holy faith in this laud, that the 
Indians might be enlightened and be brought to the know- 
ledge of the Holy Catholic Faith of Jesus Christ our Saviour, 
as taught and announced by the Roman Church. That if 
they wished to surrender their standards and their arms, and 
throw themselves upon his mercy, they might do so, for he 
would do with them lohat God should of his grace direct; or, they 
could do as they might deem proper; that other treaty or 
friendship they should not have from him." The French 
captain replied, that he could not then conclude any other 
matter with the Adelantado. He went over in the boat, 



44 THE HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES 

saying, that he went to relate what had passed, and to. agree 
upon what should be done, and within two hours he would 
return with an answer. The Adelantado said, " They could 
do as seemed best to them, and he would wait for them." 
Two hours passed, when the same French captain returned, 
with those who had accompanied him previously, and said 
to the General, " that there were many people of family, 
and nobles among them, and that they would give fifty 
thousand ducats, of ransom, if he would spare all their 
lives." He answered, " that although he was a poor soldier, 
he could not be governed by selfish interests, and if he were to 
be merciful and lenient, he desired to be so without the sus- 
picion of other motives." The French captain returned to 
urge the matter. "Do not deceive yourselves," said the 
Adelantado, " for if Heaven were to join to earth, I would 
do no otherwise than I have said." The French officer then 
going towards where his people stood, said, that in accord- 
ance with that understanding he would return shortly with 
an answer; and within half an hour he returned and placed 
in the boat, the standards, seventy arquebuses, twenty pis- 
tols, a quantity of swords and shields, and some helmets and 
breast-plates ; and the captain came to where the General 
stood, and said that all the French force there submitted 
themselves to his clemency, and surrendered to him their 
standards and their arms. The Adelantado then directed 
twenty soldiers to go in the boat and bring the French, ten 
by ten. The river was narrow and easy to pass, and he di- 
rected Diego Flores de Valdes, Admiral of the Fleet, to re- 
ceive the standards and the arms, and to go in the boat and 
see that the soldiers did not maltreat them. The Adelan- 
tado then withdrew from the shore, about two bow shots, 
behind a hillock of sand, within a copse of bushes, where 
the persons who came in the boat which brought over the 
French, could not see ; and then said to the French captain 
and the other eight Frenchmen who were there with, him, 
"Gentlemen, I have but few men with me, and they are not 
very effective, and you are numerous ; and, going unre- 
strained, it would be an easy thing to take satisfaction upon 
our men for those whom we destroyed when we took the 
fort ; and thus it is necessary that you should march with 
hands tied behind, a distance of four leagues from here 
where I have ray camp." The French replied " that they 
would do so;" and they had their hands tied strongly behind 
their backs with the match ropes of the soldiers; and the 
ten who came in the boat did not see those who had their 



OF ST. AUGUSTINE, FLORIDA. 45 

hands tied, until they came up to the same pLace, for it was 
80 arranged, in order that the French who had not passed 
the river, shoukl not understand what was heing done, and 
might not be offended, and thus were tied two hundred and 
eight Frenchmen. Of whom the Adelantado asked that if 
any among them were Catholics, they should declare it. 
Eight said that they were Catholics, and were separated 
from the others and placed in a boat, that they might go by 
the river to St. Augustine ; and all the rest replied "that 
they were of the new religion, and held themselves to be 
very good Christians ; that this was their faith and no other." 
The Adelantado then gave the order to march with them, 
having first given them meat and drink, as each ten arrived, 
before being tied, which was done before the succeeding ten 
arrived ; and he directed one of his captains who marched 
with the vanguard, that at a certain distance from there he 
would observe a mark made by a lance, which he carried in 
his hand, which would be in a sandy place that thej would 
be obliged to pass in going on their way towards the fort of 
St. Augustine, and that there the prisoners should all be 
destroyed ; and he gave the one in command of the rear- 
guard the same orders ; and it was done accordingly ; when, 
leaving there all of the dead, they returned the same night 
before dawn, to the fort at St. Augustine, although it was 
already sundown when the men were killed.' "* 

Such is the second part of this sad and bloody tragedy ; 
which took place at the Matanzas Inlet, about eighteen miles 
south of the city of St. Augustine, and at the southerly end 
of Anastasia Island. The account we have given, it must 
be borne in mind, is that of De Solis, the brother-in-law and 
apologist of Menendez ; but eveu under his extenuating 
hand the conduct of Menendez was that of one deaf to the 
voice of humanity, and exulting in cold-blooded treachery, 
dealing in vague generalities intended to deceive, while 
aftbrding a shallow apology for the actor. A massacre in 
cold blood of poor shipwrecked, famished men, prisoners 
yielding themselves to an expected clemency, tied up like 
sheep, and butchered by poignard blows from behind, 
shocked alike the moral sense of all to whom the tale came, 
without regard to faith or flag. 

* Barcia, p. 87. 



46 THE HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES 



C PI AFTER VIII. 

FATE OF KIBAULT AND HIS FOLLOWERS— BLOODY MASSA- 
CRE AT MATANZAS— 1565. 

The first detachment of the French whom Menendez met 
and 80 utterly destroyed, constituted the complement of a 
single vessel, which had been thrown ashore at a more 
northerly point than the others. All these vessels were 
wrecked between Mosquito Inlet and Matanzas. 

Of the fate of the main detachment, under Ribault in per- 
son, we have the following account, as related by the same 
apologist, the chaplain De Soils: 

" On the next day following the return of the Adelantado 
at St. Angustine, the same Indians who came before returned, 
and said that 'a great many more Christians were at the 
same part of the river as the others had been.' The Ade- 
lantado concluded that it must be Jean Ribault, the General 
of the Lutherans at sea and on land, whom they called the 
Viceroy of this country for the king of France. He imme- 
diately went, with one hundred and fifty men in good order, 
and reached the place where he had lodged the first time, at 
about midnight ; and at dawn he pushed forward to the river, 
with his men drawn out, and when it was daylight, he saw, 
two bow-shots from the other bank of the river, many per- 
sons, and a raft made to cross over the people, at the place 
where the Adelantado stood. But immediately, when the 
French saw the Adelantado and his people, they took arms, 
and displayed a royal standard and two standards of compa- 
nies, sounding fifes and drums, in very good order, and 
showing a front of battle to the Adelantado ; who, having 
ordered his men to sit down and take their breakfast, so 
that they made no demonstration of any change, he himself 
walked up and down the shore, with his admiral and two 
other captains, paying no attention to the movement and 
demonstration of battle of the French; so that they ob- 
serving this, halted and the fifes and the drums ceased, 
while with a bugle note they unfurled the white flag of 
peace, which was returned by the Adelantado. A French- 
man placed himself upon the raft, and cried with a loud 
voice that he wished to cross over, but that owins^ to the 



OF ST. AUGUSTINE, FLORIDA. 47 

force of the current he could not bring the raft over, and 
desired an Indian canoe which was there to be sent over. 
The Adelantado said he could swim over for it, under pledge 
of his word. A French sailor immediately came over, but 
the General would not permit him to speak with him, but 
directed him to take the canoe, and go and tell his captain, 
that inasmuch as he called for a conference, if he desired 
anything he should send over some one to communicate 
with him. The same sailor immediately came with a gen- 
tleman, who said he was the sergeautmajor of Jean Ribault, 
Viceroy and Captain General of this land for the king of 
France"^ and that he had sent him to say, that they had been 
wrecked with their tieet in a great storm, and that he had 
with him three hundred and fifty French ; that they wished 
to go to a fort which they held, twenty leagues from there ; 
that they wished the favor of boats, to pass this river, and 
the other, four leagues further on, and that he desired to 
know if they were S|)aniards. and under what leader they 
served. 

" The Adelantado answered him, that they were Span- 
iards, and that the captain under whom they served was the 
person now addressing him, and was called Pedro Menen- 
dez. That he shouUrtell his General that the fort which 
he held twenty leagues from there had been taken by him, 
and he had destroyed all the French, and the rest who had 
come with the fleet, because they were badly governed ; and 
then, passing thence to where the dead bodies of the French- 
men whom he had killed still lay unburied, pointed them 
out to him and said, therefore he could not permit them to 
pass the river to their fort. 

"The sergeant, with an unmoved countenance, and with- 
out any appearance of uneasiness on account of what the 
Adelantado had said, replied, that if he would have the good- 
ness to send a gentleman of his party, to say to the French 
general, that they might negotiate with safety, the people 
were much exhausted, and the general would come over in 
a boat which was there. The 'Adelantado replied, 'Fare- 
well, comrade, and bear the answer w^hich they shall give 
you; and if your general desires to come and treat with me, 
I give my word that he shall come and return securely, with 
four or six of his people whom he may select for his ad- 
visors, that he may do whatever he may conclude to be 
best.' 

" The French gentleman then departed with this message. 
Within half an hour he returned to accept the assurance the 



48 THE HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES 

Adelantiido had given, and to obtain the boat; which the 
Adelantado was unwilling to let hira have, but said he could 
use the canoe, which was safe, and the strait .vas narrow: 
and he again went back with this message. 

"Immediately Jean Ribault came over, wliom the Ade- 
lantado received very well, with other eight gentleman, who 
liad come with him. They were all g'entlemen of rank and 
position. He gave them a collation, and would have given 
them food if they had desired. Jean Ribault with much hu- 
mility, thanked him for his kind reception, and said that to 
raise'theij- spirits, much depressed by the sad news of the death 
of their comrades, they would partake only of the wine and 
condiments, and did not wish anything else to eat. Then 
after eating, Jean Ribault said, 'that he saw that tliose his 
companions were dead, and tliat he could not he mistaken if 
he desired to be." Then the Adelantado directed the sol- 
diers to bring each (^ne whatever he had taken from the 
tort; and he saw so many things that he knew for certain 
that it was taken : although he knew this liefore, yet he 
could not wholly believe it, because among his men there 
was a Frencliman by name of Barbero, of those whom the 
Adelantado had ordisred to be destroyed with the rest, and 
was left for dead with the others, having with the first thrust 
he received ikllen down and made as though he were dead, 
and when they left there he had passed over by swimming, 
to Ribault ; and this Barbero held it for certain that the Ade- 
lantado had deceived them in saying that tlie fort was taken, 
it not being so; and thus until now he had supposed. The 
Adelantado said that in order with more certainty to believe 
this and satisty himselt!, he might converse apart with the 
two Frenchmen who were present, to satisty him better; 
which he di(L 

"Immediately Jean Ribault came towards the Adelantado 
and said, * it was certain that all which he had told him was 
true ; but that what had happened to him, might have hap- 
pened to the Adelantado ; and since their kings werebrotli- 
ers, and such great friends, the Adelantath) should act to- 
wards him as a friend, and give him ships and ])rovisions, 
that he might return to France.' 

"The Adelantado replied in the same manner that he had 
done to the other Erenchme!i, as to what he would do ; and 
that taking it or leaving it, Jean Ribault could obtain no- 
thing further from the Adelantado. Jean Ribault then said 
that he would go and give an account of matters to hispeo- 



OF ST. AUGUSTINE, FLORIDA. 49 

pie, for he had among them many of noble blood ; and 
would return or send an answer as to what he would do. 

" Three hc'urs afterwards, Jean Ribault returned in the 
canoe, and said, 'that there were different opinions among 
his people ; that while some were willing to' yield them- 
selves to his clemency, others were not.' The Adelantado 
replied ' that it mattei-ed but little to him whether they all 
came, or a part, or none at all ; that they should do as it 
pleased them, and he would act with the same liberty.' Jean. 
Ribault said to him, ' that the half of the people who were 
willing to yield themselves to his clemency, would pay him 
a ransom of more than 100,000 ducats ; and the other half 
were able to pay more, for there were among them persona 
of wealth and large incomes, who had desired to establish 
estates in this country.' The Adelantado answered him, 
' It would grieve me much to lose so great and rich a ran- 
som, under the necessity I am under for such aid, to carry 
forward the corquest and settlement of this land, in the 
name of my kii.g, as is my duty, and to plant here the Holy 
Evangel.' Jean Ivibault considered from this, that with the 
amount they could all give, he might be induced to spare 
his own life and that of all the others who were with him, and 
that they might be able to pay more than 200,000 ducats ; 
and he said to the Adelantado, ' that he would return with 
his answer to his people ; that as it was late, he w^ould take 
it as a favor if he would be willing to wait until the following 
day, when he would bring their reply as to what they would 
conclude to do.' The Adelantado said, 'Yes, that he would 
wait.' Jean Ribault then went back to his people, it being 
already sunset. In the morning, he returned with the canoe, 
and surrendered to the Adelantado two royal standards — 
the one that of the king of France, the other that of the 
Admiral (Coligny), — and the standards of the company, and 
a sword, dagger, and helmet, gilded very beautifully ; and 
also a shield, a pistol, and a commission given him under 
the high admiral of France, to assure to him his title and 
possessions. 

"He then said to him, 'that but one hundred and fifty of 
the three hundred and fifty whom he had with him were 
willing to yield to his clemency, and that the others had 
withdrawn during the night ; and that they might take the 
boat and bring those who were w^illing to come over, and 
their arms.' The Adelantado immediately directed the cap- 
tain, Diego Flores Valdes, Admiral of the fleet, that he 
should bring them over as he had done the others, ten by 
4 



50 THE HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES 

ten ; and the Adelantado, taking Jean Ribault behind the 
sand hills, among the hushes where the others had their 
hands tied behind them, he said to these and all the others 
as he had done before, that they had four leagues to go after 
night, and that he could not permit them to go unbound; 
and after they were all tied, he asked if they were Catholics 
or Lutherans, or if any of them desired to make confession. 

"Jean Ribault replied, 'that all who were there were of 
the new religion,' and he then began to repeat the psalm, 
' Domiim! 3Iemen(o ! Mei ;' and having finished, he said, ' that 
from dust they came and to dust they must return, and that 
in tw^enty years, more or less, he must render his final ac- 
count ; that the Adelantado might do with them as he 
chose.' The Adelantado then ordered all to be killed, in 
the same order and at the same mark, as had been done to 
the others. He spared only the fifers, drummers, and trum- 
peters, and four others who said that they were Catholics, in 
all, sixteen persons." " Todos los demas fueron dcgallados,'' — 
"all the rest were slaughtered," is the sententious summary 
by which Padre de Solis announced the close of the sad 
career of the gray-haired veteran, the brave soldier, the Ad- 
miral Jean Ribault, and his companions.* 

At some point on the thickly-w^ooded shores of the Island 
of Anastasio, or beneath the shifting mounds of sand which 
mark its shores, may still lie the bones of some of the three 
hundred and fifty who, spared from destruction by the tem- 
pest, and escaping the perils of the sea and of the savage, 
fell victims to the vindictive rancor and blind rage of one 
than whom history recalls none more cruel, or less humane. 
But while their bones, scattered on earth and sea, unhonored 
and unburied, were lost to human sight, the tale of their 
destruction and sad fate, scattered in like manner over the 
whole world, has raised to their memory through sympathy 
with their fate, a memorial which will endure as long as the 
pages of history. 

The Adelantado returned that night to St. Augustine, 
where, says his apologist, some persons censured him for 
his cruelt5% Others commended what he had done, as the 
act of a good general, and said that even if they had been 
Catholics, he could not have done more justly than he had 
done for them ; for with the few provisions that the Adelan- 
tado luid, either the one or the other people would have had 
to perish with hunger, and the French would have destroyed 
our people : they were the most numerous. f 

* Barcia, p. 89. f Barcia, p. 89. 



OF ST. AUGUSTINE, FLORIDA. 51 

We have still to trace the fate of the body of two hundred, 
.who retired from Ribault after his final determination to 
surrender to the tender mercies of Menendez. As we are 
already aware, it comprised the elite of his force, men of 
standing and rank, and whose spirits had retained energy 
to combat against the natural discouragements of their po- 
sition ; and they adopted the nobler resolve of selling their 
lives, at least with their swords in their hands. 

De Solis proceeds to give the following further account of 
them : — 

"Twenty days subsequently to the destruction of these, 
some Indians came to the Adelantado, and informed him by 
.signs, that eight days' journey from here to the southward, 
near the Bahama Channel, at Canaveral, a large number of 
people, brethren of those whom the General had caused to 
be killed, were building a fort and a vessel. The Adelan- 
tado at once came to the conclusion, that the French had 
retired to the place where their vessels were wrecked, and 
where their artillery and munitions, and provisions were, in 
order to build a vessel and return to France to procure suc- 
cor. The General thereupon dispatched from St. Augus- 
tine to St. Matteo, ten of his soldiers, conveying intelligence 
of what had taken place, and directing that they should 
send to him one hundred and fifty of the soldiers there, 
with the thirty-five others who remained when he returned 
to St. Augustine, after taking the fort. The master of the 
camp immediately dispatched them, under command of Cap- 
tains Juan Velez de Medrano and Andrez Lopez Patrio ; 
and they arrived at St. Augustine on October 23d. On the 
25th, after having heard mass, the Adelantado departed for 
the coast, with three hundred men, and three small vessels 
to go by sea with the arms and provisions ; and the vessels 
were to go along and progress equally with the troops ; and 
each niglit when the troops halted, the vessels also anchored 
by them, for it; was a clear and sandy coast. 

"The Adelantado carried in the three vessels provisions 
for forty days for three hundred men, and one day's ration 
was to last for two days ; and he promised to do everything 
for the general good of all, although they might have to 
undergoniany dangers and privations ; that he had great 
hope that he would have the goodness and mercy of God to 
aid him in carrying through safely this so holy and pious an 
undertaking. He then took leave of them, leaving most of 
them in tears, for he was much loved, feared, and respected 
by all.* 

* Sarcia, p. 89. 



52 THE HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES 

"The Adclantfido, after a wearisome journej, marching 
on foot himself the whole distance, arrived in the neighbor- 
hood of the French camp on All Saints Day, at daylight, 
guided by the Indians by land, and the three vessels under 
the command of Captain Diego de Maya. As soon as the 
French descried the Spaniards, they fled to their fort, with- 
out any remaining. The Adelantado sent them a trum- 
peter, offering them their lives, that they should return and 
should receive the same treatment as the Spaniards. One 
hundred and fifty came to the Adelantado ; and their leader, 
with twenty others, sent to say that they would sooner be 
devoured by the Indians, than surrender themselves to the 
Spaniards. The Adelantado received those Avho surren- 
dered, very well, and having set fire to the fort, which was 
of wood, burned the vessel which they were building, and 
buried the artillery, for the vessels could not carry them." 

De Solis here closes his account of the matter ; but from 
other accounts we learn that the Adelantado kept his faith 
on this occasion with them, and that some entered his ser- 
vice, some were converted to his faith, and others returned 
to France ; and thus ended the Huguenot attempt to colo- 
nize the shores of Florida. 

There are several other accounts of the fate of Ribault 
and liis followers, drawn from the narratives of survivors 
of the expedition, which, without varying the general order 
of events, fill in sundry details of the massacres. The main 
point of difference is, as to the pledges or assurances given 
by Menendez. The French accounts say that he pledged 
his faith to them that their lives should be spared.* It will 
be seen that the Spanish account denies that he did so, but 
makes him use language subject to misconstruction, and 
calculated to deceive them into the hope and expectation of 
safety. I do not see that in a Christian or even moral view 
there is much difference between an open breach of faith 
and the breach of an implied faith, particularly when it was 
only by this deception that the surrender could have been 
accomplished. Nor could Menendez have had a very deli- 
cate sense of the value of the word of a soldier, a Christian, 
and a gentleman, when, as his apologist admits, he did di- 
rectly use the language of falsehood, to induce them to sub- 
mit to the degradation of having their hands tied. 

Nor, considered in its broader aspects, is it a matter of any 

* Such was the understanding of those who then wrote in reference to 
the transaction, as Barcia admits. 



OF ST. AUGUSTINE, FLORIDA. 5S 

consequence whether he gave his word or no ; nor does it 
lessen the enormity of his conduct, had they submitted 
themselves in the most unreserved manner to his discretion. 
France and Spain were at peace ; no act of hostility had 
been committed by the French toward the Spaniards ; and 
Kibault asked only to be allowed to pass on. In violation 
alike of the laws of war and the law of humanity, he first 
induced them to surrender, to abide what God, whose holy 
name he invoked, should put into his heart to do, and then 
cajoling them into allowing their hands to be tied, he or- 
dered them to be killed, in their bonds as they stood, de- 
fenseless, helpless, wrecked, and famished men. It would 
have been a base blot upon human nature, had he thus 
served the most savage tribe of nations, standing on that far 
shore, brought into the common sympathy of want and suf- 
fering. The act seems one of monstrous atrocity, when com- 
mitted against the people of a sister nation. 



54 THE HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES 



CHAPTER IX. 

rOETIFYIJfG OF ST. AUGUSTINE— DISAFFCTIONS AND MU- 
TINIES— APPEOVAL OF MENENDEZ' ACTS BY THE KING 
OF SPAIN. 1565-1568. 

DuRiXG the time of the several expeditions of the Ade- 
lantado against the French Huguenots, the fortification 
and strengthening of the defenses of the settlement at St. 
Augustine had not been neglected. The fort, or Indian 
council-house, which had heen first fortified, seems to have 
been consumed in the conflagation spoken of; and there- 
upon a plan of a regular fortification or fort was marked 
out by Menendez ; and, as there existed some danger of the 
return of the French, the Spaniards labored unceasingly 
with their whole force, to put it in a respectable state of de- 
fense. From an engraving contained in De Bry, illustrating 
the attack of Sir Francis Drake, twenty years afterwards, 
this fort appears to have been an octagonal structure of logs, 
and located near the site of the present fort, while the set- 
tlement itself was probably made in the first instance, at 
the lower end of the peninsula, near the building now called 
"the powder-house," 

He also established a government for the place, with civil 
and military officials, a liall of justice, etc. 

All of these matters Avere arranged hy IMenendez before 
his expedition against the French at Canaveral, of whom 
one hundred and fifty returned with him, and were received 
upon an equal footing with his own men, the more distin- 
guished being received at his own table upon the most 
friendly terms; a clemency which, with a knowledge of his 
character, can only be ascribed to motives of policy. The 
position of the French at Canaveral was probably inaccessi- 
ble, as they had their arms, besides artillery brought from 
the vessels ; and the duplicity which had characterized his 
success with their comrades, was out of the question here ; 
the French could therefore exact their own terms, and un- 
shackled could forcibly resist any attempt at treachery. 

The addition of this number to his force lessened the 
already diminished supply of provisions which Menendez 
had brought with him ; and want soon began to threaten his 
camp. He sent as many of his soldiers as he could into 



OF ST. AUGUSTINE, FLORIDA. 65 

camp at San Matteo, and endeavored to dravr supplies from 
the Indians ; but unfortunately for him, the country between 
the St. Johns and St. Augustine was under the rule of the 
Indian Chief, Satouriara, the friend (and ally of the French), 
whose hostility the Spaniards were never able to overcome. 
Satouriara and his followers withdrew from all peaceable 
intercourse with the Spaniards, and hung about their path 
to destroy, harrass, and cut them off upon every possible 
occasion. 

The winter succeeding the settlement of the Spaniards at 
St. Augustine, was most distressing and discouraging to 
them. The lack of provisions in their camp drove them to 
seek, in the surrounding country, subsistence from the roots 
and esculent plants it might atibrd, or to obtain in the neigh- 
boring creeks, fish and oysters; but no sooner did a Spaniard 
venture out alone beyond the gates of the fort, than he was 
grasped, by some unseen foe, from the low underbrush and 
put to death, or a shower of arrows from some tree-top was 
his first intimation of danger ; if he discharged his arque- 
buse towards his invisible assailants, others would spring 
upon him before he could reload his piece ; or, if he at- 
tempted to find fish and oysters in some quiet creek, the 
noiseless canoe of an Indian would dart in upon him, and 
the heavy war-club of the savage descending upon his un- 
protected head, end his existence. Against such a foe, no de- 
fense could avail ; and it is related that more than one hun- 
dred and twenty of the Spaniards were thus killed, including 
Captain Martin de Ochoa, Captain Diego de Hevia, Fer- 
nando de Garaboa, and Juan Menendez, a nephew of the 
Adelantado, and many others of the bravest and most dis- 
tinguished of the garrison. 

In this crisis of affairs, the Governor concluded to go to 
Cuba himself, to obtain relief for his colony. He in the! 
meantime established a fort at St. Lucia, near Canaveral. i 
A considerable jealousy seems to have existed on the part 
of the governor of Cuba; and he received Menendez with 
great coolness, and in reply to his appeals for aid, only of- 
fered an empty vessel. In this emergency, Menendez con- 
templated, as his only means of obtaining what he wished, 
to go upon a filibustering expedition against some Portu- 
guese and English vessels which were in those waters. While 
making preparations to do this, four vessels of the fleet with 
which he had left Spain, and which had been supposed lost, 
arrived ; and after dispatching a vessel to Campeachy for 
provisions, he commenced his return voyage to his colony, 



56 THE HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES 

delaying however for a time in South Florida, to seek intel- 
ligence among the Indians of his lost son. 

In the meantime his garrisons at St. Augustine and San 
Matteo had mutinied, and were in open revolt; provisions 
had become so scarce that tv^^enty-tive reals had been given for 
a pound of biscuit, and but for the fish they would have 
starved. They plundered the public stores, imprisoned their 
oflicers, and seized upon a vessel laden with provisions 
which had been sent to the garrison. The Master of the 
Camp succeeded in escaping from confinement and releasing 
his fellow prisoners, b}" a bold movement cut oft' the inter- 
course between the mutineers on board the vessel and those 
on shore, and hung the Sergeant IMajor, who was at the head 
of the movement. The Commandant then attempted to 
attack those in the vessel, and was nearly lost wnth his com- 
panions, by being wrecked on the bar. The vessel made 
sail to the West India Islands. The garrison at San Matteo 
took a vessel there and come around to St. Augustine, but 
arrived after their accomplices had left. 

Disease had already begun to make its ravages, "and added 
to the general wish to leave the country; which all would 
then have done had they had the vessels in which to embark. 
They used for their recovery from sickness, the roots of a 
native shrub, wdiich produced marvelous cures. 

At this period Menendez returned to the famished garri- 
son, but w^as forced to permit Juan Vicente, with one hun- 
dred of the disaftected, to go to St. Domingo by a vessel 
which he dispatched there for supplies; and it is said that 
the governors of the islands where they went, harbored 
them, and that of some five hundred who on difterent occa- 
sions deserted from the Adelantado, and all of whom had 
been brought out at his cost, but two or three were ever re- 
turned to him ; while the deserters putting their own con- 
struction upon their acts, sent home to the king ^f Spain 
criminations of the Adelantado, and represented the con- 
quest of Florida as a hopeless and worthless acquisition ; 
that it was barren and swampy, and produced nothing. 

After this defection, ^Menendez proceeded along the coast 
to San Matteo, and thence to Guale, Amelia, and adjoining 
islands, Crista and St. Helena; made peaceful proposals to 
the Indian tribes, lectured them upon theology, and planted 
a cross at their council-houses. The cacique of Guale asked 
Menendez how it was " that he had waged war upon the 
other white men, who had come from the same country as 
himself?" lie replied, " that the other white people were 



OF ST. AUGUSTINE, FLORIDA. 67 

bad Christians, and believers in lies ; and that those whom 
he had killed, deserved the most cruel death, because they 
had fled their own country, and came to mislead and deceive 
the caciques and other Indians, as they had already before 
misled and deceived many other good Christians, in order 
that the devil may take possession of them," While at St, 
Helena he succeeded in obtaining permission of the Indians 
to erect a foi't there, and he left a detachment. On his re- 
turn he also erected fort San Felipe, at Crista; and after 
setting up a cross at Guale, the cacique demanded of him, 
that as now they had become good Christians, he should 
cause rain to come upon their fields ; for a drought had con- 
tinued eight months. The same night a severe rain-storm 
happened, which confirmed the faith of the Indians, and 
gained the Adelantado great credit with them. While here, 
he learned that there was a fugitive Lutheran among the 
Indians, and he took some pains to cause to be given to the 
fugitive hopes of good treatment if he would come into the 
Spanish post at St. Helena, while he gave private directions 
that he should be killed, directing his lieutenant to make 
very strange of his disappearance; an incident very illus- 
trative of the vindictiveness and duplicity of Menendez.* 

He returned to St. Augustine, and was received with great 
joy, and devoted himself to the completion of the fort, which 
was to frighten the savages, and enforce respect from stran- , 
gers. It was built, it is said, where it now stands, donde este ' 
ahora, (1722.) 

The colony left at St. Helena mutinied almost immedi- 
ately, and seizing a vessel sent with supplies, sailed for Cuba, 
and were wrecked on the Florida Keys, where they met at 
an Indian town the mutineers who had deserted from the 
fort at St. Matteo : these had been also wrecked there. 

The garrison again becoming much straitened for provi- 
sions, the Adelantado, in June, was obliged to go to Cuba 
for succor. He was received with indifference, and his 
wishes unheeded. He applied to the governor of Mexico, 
and others who happened, to be there, and who had the 
power of assisting him ; from all he received no encourage- 
ment, but the advice to abandon his enterprise. He at last 
pawned his jewels, the badge of his order, and his valuables, 
thus obtaining five hundred ducats ; with wliich he pur- 
chased provisions, and set sail on his return, with only sixty- 
five men. 

But just at this period succor came to the famished 

* Ensay. Cron. 110. 



58 THE HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES 

troops; a fleet of seventeen vessels arrived with fifteen hun- 
dred men from Spain, under Juan de Avila, as admiral. 
B}^ this means all the posts were succored and reinforced, 
and the enterprise saved from destruction ; for the small 
supplies brought by Menendez would have been soon ex- 
hausted, and further efforts being out of his power, they 
would have been forced to withdraw from the country. 

The admiral of the fleet also had entrusted to him for the 
Adelantado a letter from the king, written on the 12th of 
May, 1566, which, among other matters, contained the fol- 
lowing royal commendation of the acts of Menendez. "Of 
the great success which has attended your enterprise, we 
have the most entire satisfaction, and we bear in memory 
the loyalty, the love, and the diligence, with which you 
have borne us service, as well as the dangers and perils in 
which you have been placed ; and as to the retribution you 
have visited upon the Lutheran pirates who sought to oc- 
cupy that country, and to fortify themselves there, in order 
to disseminate in it their wicked creed, and to prosecute 
there their wrongs and robberies, which they have done 
and were doing against God's service and my own, we be- 
lieve that you did it with every justification and propriety, 
and we consider ourself to have been well served in so 
doing."* 

To this commendation of Philip II., it is unnecessary to 
add any comment, save that no other action, could have 
been expected of him. And of Charles the i^inth, of 
France, the Spanish historian says that he treated the me- 
morial of the widows and orphans of the slain with con- 
tempt, "considering their punishment to have been just, in 
that they were equally enemies of Spain, of France, of the 
Church, and of the peace of the world." 

During the absence of Menendez to inspect his posts, 
disaffection again broke out; and finding his force too nu- 
merous, he with sixteen vessels went upon a freebooting 
expedition to attack pirates. He failed to meet with any ; 
but having learned that a large French fleet was on its way, 
he visited and fortified the forts on the islands of Cuba, 
Hispaniola, and Puerto Rico, and again returned to Flor- 
ida ; the expected French fleet never having arrived. About 
this time, a small vessel brought from Spain three learned 
and exemplary priests; one of whom, Padre Martinez, 
lauded upon the coast with some of the crew, and being 
unable to regain the vessel, coasted along to St. George 

* Ensayo : Cron. 115. 



OF ST. AUGUSTINE, FLORIDA. 59 

Island, where he was attacked and murdered hy the Indians, 
with a number of his companions. 

The following- year was principally occupied by Menendez, 
n strengthening his fortifications at his three forts, in visit- 
ing the Indian chiefs at their towns, and exploring the 
country. One of his expeditious went as far north as the 
thirty-seventh degree of latitude by sea, and another went 
to the foot of the Apalachian Mountains, about one hun- 
dred and fifty leagues, and established a fort. The former 
was about the mouth of the Chesapeake, called the Santa 
Maria, "^ and the land expedition, probably to theup-couutry 
of Georgia, in the neighborhood of Eome. 

All attempts at pacifying their warlike neighbor were as 
fruitless as their attempts to subjugate him; whether in 
artifice and duplicity, in open warfare, or secret ambush, 
he was more than equal to the Adelantado, and was a 
worthy ancestor of the modern Seminole, — never present 
when looked for, and never absent when an opportunity of 
striking a blow occurred. 

The Adelantado having had built an extremely slight 
vessel of less than twenty tons, called a frigate, concluded to 
visit Spain, and ran in seventeen days to the Azores, sailing 
seventy leagues per day, an exploit not often equaled in 
modern times. He was received with great joy in Spain, 
and the king treated him with much consideration. The 
Adelantado felt great anxiety to return to his colony, 
and deprecated the delays of the court, fearing the result of 
the indignation at his cruelty to the Huguenots, which, says 
his chronicler, increased day by day.f 

* Pensacola Bay was also so called, 
f Ensayo: Cron. 133. 



60 THE HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES 



CHAPTER X. 

THE NOTABLE EEVENGE OF DOMINIC DE GOURGUES— EE- 
TURN OF MENENDEZ— INDIAN MISSION— 1568. 

"While Menendez thus remained at the Spanish court 
urging the completion of his business, seeking compensa- 
tion for the great expenditures which he had made in the 
king's service, and vindicating himself from the accusations 
which had been preferred against him, — the revenge, the 
distant marraurs of which had already reached his ears, fell 
upon the Spaniards on the St. Johns. 

Dominic de Gourgues, one of those soldiers of fortune 
who then abounded throughout Europe, took upon himself 
the expression of the indignation with which the French 
nation viewed the slaughter of their countrymen. From 
motives of policy, or from feelings still less creditable, the 
French court ignored the event; but it rankled nevertheless 
in the national heart, and many a secret vow of revenge 
was breathed, the low whispers of which reached even the 
confines of the Spanish court. Conscience, and the know- 
'ledsre that the sentiment of the ao;e was against him, made 
Menendez from the moment of his success exceedmgly 
anxious lest well-merited retribution should fall upon his 
own colony. He guarded against it in every way in his 
power ; he strengthened all his posts ; he erected for the 
protection of San Matteo, formerly Fort Caroline, two small 
forts on either side of the entrance of the river, at the points 
now known as Batten Island and Mayport Mills. He placed 
large garrisons at each post, and had made such an-ange- 
ments against surprise or open attack upon his forts, that 
Father Mendoza boasted that "half of all France could not 
take them." 

De Gourgues, with three vessels and about two hundred 
and fifty chosen men, animated with like feelings with him- 
self, appeared in April, 1568, oft" the mouth of the St. Johns. 
The Spinish fort received his vessels with a salute, sup- 
posing them to be under the flag of Spain. De Gourgues 
returned the salute, thus confirming their error. He then 
entered the St. Marys, called the Somme, and was met by 
a large concourse of Indians, friendly to the French and bit- 



OF ST. AUGUSTINE, FLORIDA. 61 

terly hostile to the Spaniards, at the head of whom was the 
stern and uncompromising Saturioura. Their plans were 
quickly formed, and immediately carried into execution. 
Their place of rendezvous was the Fort George Inlet, called 
by them the Sarabay ; and they traversed that island at low 
tide, fell suddenly upon the fort at Batten Island on the 
north side of the river, completely surprising it. The force 
occupying the Spanish forts amounted to four hundred men, 
one hundred and twenty of whom occupied the two forts at 
the month of the river, and the remainder Fort Caroline. 
The French with their Indian allies approached the fort on 
the north side of the river at day-break. Ilaving waded the 
intervening marsh and creek, to the great damage of their 
feet and legs by reason of the oyster banks, they arrived 
within two hundred yards of the post, when they were dis- 
covered by the sentinel upon the platform of the fort ; who 
immediately cried, '• to arms," and discharged twice at the 
French a culverin which had been taken at Fort Caroline. 
Before he could load it a third time the brave Olatocara 
leaped upon him, and killed him with a pike. Gourgues 
then charging in, the garrison, by this time alarmed, rushed 
out, armed hastily and seeking escape; another part of 
Gourgues' force coming up, inclosed the Spaniards between 
them, and all but fifteen of the garrison perished on the 
spot ; the others were taken prisoners, only to be reserved 
for the summary vengeance which the French leader medi- 
tated. 

The Spanish garrison in the other fort kept up in tlie 
mean time a brisk cannonade, which incommoded the as- 
sailants, who however soon managed to point the pieces of 
the fort they had taken ; and under the cover of this fire the 
French crossed to the other fort, their Indian allies in great 
numbers swimming with them. The garrison of sixty men, 
panic-struck, made no attempt at resistance, but fled, en- 
deavoring to reach the main fort; being intercepted by the 
Indians in one direction, and by the French in another, but 
few made good their escape. These, arriving at Fort Caro- 
line, carried an exaggerated account of the number of their 
assailants. 

De Gourgues at once pushed forward to attack Fort Caro- 
lipe, while its defenders were terrified at the suddenness of 
his attack, and the supposed strength of his force. Upon 
his arrival near the fort, the Spanish commander sent out a 
detachment of sixty men, to make a reconnoisance. De 
Gourgues skilfully interposed a body of his own men with 



62 THE HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES 

a large number of the Indians between tlie reconnoitering 
party and the fort, and then with his main force charged 
upon them in front : when the Spaniards, turning to seek the 
shelter of the fort, were met by the force in their rear, and 
were all either killed or taken prisoners. Seeing this mis- 
fortune, the Spanish commander despaired of being" able to 
hold the fortress, and determined to make a timely retreat 
to St. Augustine. In attempting this, most of his followers 
fell into the hands of the Indians, and were slain upon the 
spot ; the commandant with a few others alone escaped. 

De Gourgues, now completely successful in making re- 
taliation for the fate of his countrymen on the same spot 
where they sntfered, on the same tree which had borne the 
bodies of the Huguenots caused his prisoners to be sus- 
pended ; and as Menedez had on the former occasion erected 
a tablet that they had been punished " not as Frenchmen 
but as Lutherans," so De Gourgues in like manner erected 
an inscription that he had done this to them '■'not as to 
Spaniards, nor as to outcasts, but as to traitors, thieves and mur- 
derers." *^ 

After inducing the Indians to destroy the forts, and to 
raze them to the ground, he set sail for France, arriving 
safely without further adventure. 

His conduct was at the time disavowed and censured by 
the French court; and the Spanish ambassador had the as- 
surance, in the name of that master who had publicly de- 
clared his approval of the conduct of Menendez, to demand 
the surrender of De Gourgues to his vengence. The brave 
captain, however the crown might seem to disapprove, was 
secretly sustained and protected by many distinguished per- 
sons official and private, and by the mass of the people ; to 
whom his boldness, spirit, and signal success were grateful. 
Some years afterwards he was restored to the tkvor of his 
sovereign, and appointed admiral of the fleet. 

That De Gourgues deserves censure, cannot be denied ; 
but there will always exist an admiration for his courage 
and intrepid valor, with a sympathy for the bitter provoca- 
tions under which he acted, both personal and national ; a 
sympathy not shared with Menendez, who visited his wrath 
upon the religions opinions of men, while De Gourgues was 
the unauthorized avenger of undoubted crime and inhu- 
manity. Both acted in violation of the pure spirit of that 



* Tornaux Compans, p. 357. 



OF ST. AUGUSTINE, FLORIDA. 63 

Christianity which they alike professed to_revere, under the 
same form. 

While these scenes were enacting on the St. Johns, 
Menendez was on his way to his colonies, where he first 
heard of the descent of De Gourgues, then on his way back 
to France. The Adelantado upon his arrival found his 
troops hungry and naked, and their relations with the] In- 
dians worse than ever. Having made such arrangements 
as were in his power, he returned to Havana, to further his 
plans for introducing Christianity among the Indians ; to 
which, to his credit be it 8aid,'Jie devoted the greater share 
of his time and attention. Father liogel applied himself to 
learning their language, with great success ; and an institu- 
tion was established in Havana especially for their instruc- 
tion. In the Ensayo Cronologica, there is set forth in full, a 
rescript addressed by Pope Pius Y., to Menendez, conveying 
to him the acknowledgements of his Holiness for the zeal 
and loyalty he had exhibited, and his labors in carr3'ing the 
faith to the Indians, and urging him strongly to see to it 
that his Indian converts should not be scandalized by the 
vicious lives of their white brethren who claimed to ^be 
Christians. 

A small party of Spaniards, as has already been men- 
tioned, accompanied by a priest, De Quiros, had been left 
upon the Chesapeake, and under the auspices of a young 
converted chief, who had been some time with the Spaniards 
in Havana and Florida, anticipated a more easy access to 
the Indian tribes in that region. Another priest, with ten 
associates, went the following year ; when, after they had 
sent away their vessel, the}^ discovered that their predeces- 
sor had been murdered, through the treachery of the rene- 
gade apostate ; and they themselves shortly fell victims to 
his perfidy. Menendez dispatched a third vessel there ; 
when the fate of the two former parties was ascertained, and 
he went in person to chastise the murderers ; he succeeded in 
capturing six or seven, who, it is said, (rather improbably I 
think), confessed themselves to have been implicated in the 
massacre. Menendez, in his summary and sailor-like way, 
ordered their execution at the yard-arm of his vessel. The 
Cronicle says that they were first converted and baptized, 
by the zeal of Farther Pogel, before the sentence was car- 
ried into execution. A long period elapsed before any 
further efforts were made in this quarter to establish a col- 
ony ; and it was then accomplished b}' the English. In con- 
sequence of these temporary establishments, however, the 



64 THE HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES 

Spanish crown, for a long period, claimed the whole qf the 
intervening country, as lying within its Province of Florida. 

The annlils of the city during the remainder of the life of 
Menendez, present only the usual vicissitudes of new set- 
tlements, — the alternations of supply and want, occasional 
disaffection s, and petty annoyances. 

Menendez was the recipient from his court of new hon- 
ors from time to time, and had heen appointed the grand 
admiral of the Spanish Armada; when, in September, 1574, 
he was suddenly carried oif by a fever, at the age of fifty-five. 
It is a singular coincidence that De Gourgues, five years 
afterwards, was carried off in a similar manner, just after 
his appointment as admiral of the French fieet. A splendid 
monument in the church of San Nicolas, at Aviles, was 
erected to the memory of Menendez, with the following in- 
scription: 

"Here lies buried the illustrious Cavalier, Pedro 
Menendez de Aviles, a native of this city, Adelantado 
OF the Provinces of Florida, Knight Commander of Santa 
Cruz of the order of Santiago, and Captain General of 
THE Oceanic Seas and of the Armada which his Royal 
Highness collected at Santander in the year 1574, where 
HE died on the 17tii of September of that year, in the 
55th year of his age." 



OF ST. AUGUSTINE, FLORIDA. 65 



CHAPTER XI. 

SIR FRAI^CIS DRAKES ATTACK UPON ST. AUGUSTINE- 
ESTABLISHMENT OF MISSIONS— MASSACRE OP MISSION- 
ARIES AT ST. AUGUSTINE— 1583-1638. 

ISTiNE years had elapsed from tlie death of Menendez, and 
the colony at St. Augustine had slowly progressed into the 
settlement of a small town ; but the eclat and importance 
which the presence of Menendez had given it, were much 
lessened ; when, in 1586, Sir Francis Drake, with a fleet re- 
turning from South America, discovered the Spanish look- 
out upon Anastasia Island, and sent boats ashore to ascer- 
tain something in reference to it. Marching up the shore, 
they discovered across the bay, a fort, and further up a 
town built of wood. 

Proceeding tow^ards the fort, which bore the name of San 
Juan de Pinas, some guns w^ere fired upon them from it, 
and they retired towards their vessel; the same evening a 
fifer made his appearance, and informed them that he was 
a Frenchman, detained a prisoner there, and that the 
Spaniards had abandoned their fort; and he offered to 
conduct them over. Upon this information they crossed 
the river and found the fort abandoned as they had been 
informed, and took possession of it without opposition. It 
was built entirely of wood, and only surrounded by a wall 
or pale formed of the bodies or trunks of large trees, set up- 
right in the earth; for, says the narrative, it was not at that 
time inclosed by a ditch, as ithad been but lately begun b}' the 
Spaniards. The platforms were made of the bodies of 
large pine trees (of which there are plenty here), laid hor- 
izontally across each other, with earth rammed in to fill up 
the vacancies. Fourteen brass cannon were found in the 
fort, and there was left behind the treasure chest, con- 
taining X2,000 sterling, designed for the payment of the 
garrison, which consisted of one hundred and fifty men. 
Whether the massive, iron-bound mahogany chest,* still 
preserved in the old fort is the same which fell into the 



* This old chest, which remained in one of the western vaults of the 
fort, up to the late war, was broken up for relics, and is no longer there. 

5 



66 THE HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES 

hands of Drake, is a question for antiquaries to decide; its 
ancient appearance might well justify the supposition. 

On the following day, Drake's forces marched towards the 
town, but owing, it is said, to heavy rains, were obliged to 
return and go in the boats. On their approach, the Span- 
iards fled into the countr}'. It is said, in Barcia, that a 
Spaniard concealed in the bushes, fired at the sergeant ma- 
jor and wounded him, and then ran up and dispatched him, 
and that in revenge for this act, Drake burnt their buildings 
and destroyed their gardens. The garrison and inhabitants 
retired to fort San Matteo, on the St. Johns river. Barcia 
says that the population of the place was then increasing 
considerabl}', and that it possessed a hall of justice, parochial 
church, and other buildings, together with gardens in the 
rear of the town. 

An engraved plan or view of Drake's descent upon St- 
Augustine, published after his return to England, represents 
an octagonal fort between two streams; at the distance of 
half a mile another stream; beyond that the town, with a 
look-out and* two religious houses, one of which is a church, 
and the other probably the house of the Franciscans, who 
had shortly before established a house of their order there. 
The town contains three squares lengthwise, and four in 
width, with gardens on the west side. 

Some doubt has been thrown on the actual site of the 
first settlement, by this account ; but I think it probably 
stood considerably to the south of the present public square, 
between the barracks and the powder-house. Perhaps the 
Maria Sanchez creek may have then communicated with the 
bay near its present head, in wet weather and at high tides 
isolating the fort from the town. The present north ditch 
may have been the bed of a tide creek, and thus would cor- 
respond to the appearance presented by the sketch. It is 
well known that the north end of the city was built at a 
much later period than the southern, and that the now va- 
cant space below the barracks, was 'once occupied with 
buildings. Buildings and fields are shown upon Anastasia 
Island, opposite the town. The relative position of the 
town with reference to the entrance of the harbor is cor- 
rectly shown on the plan ; and there seems no sufiicient 
ground to doubt the identity of the present town with the 
ancient locality. 

The garrison and country were then under the command 
of Don Pedro Menendez, a nephew of the Adelantado, who, 
after the English squadron sailed, having received assistance 



OF ST. AUGUSTINE, FLORIDA. 67 

from Havana, began, it is said, to rebuild the city, and 
made great efforts to increase its population, and to induce 
the Indians to settle in its neighborhood. 

In 1592, twelve Franciscan missionaries arrived at St. Au- 
gustine, with their Superior, Fraj Jean de Silva, and placed 
themselves under the charge of Father Francis Manon, 
Warden of the convent of St. Helena. One of them, a Mexi- 
can, Farther Francis Panja, drew up in the language of the 
Yemasees his "Abridgment of Christian Doctrine," said to 
be the first work compiled in any of our Indian languages. 

The Franciscan Father Corpa established a Mission 
house for the Indians at Talomato, in the northwest portion 
of the city of St, Augustine, where there was than an Indian 
village. Father Bias de Rodriguez, also called Montes, had 
an Indian Church at a village of the Indians, called Tapoqui, 
situated on the creek called Cano de la Leche, north of the 
fort; and the church bearing the name of " Our Lady of the 
Milk" was situated on the elevated ground a quarter of a 
mile north of the fort, near the creek. A stone church 
existed at this localit}^ as late as 1795, and the crucifix be- 
longing to it is preserved in the Roman Catholic Church at 
St. Augustine. 

These missions proceeded with considerable apparent suc- 
cess, large numbers of the Indians being received and in- 
structed both at this and other missions. 

Among the converts at the mission of Talomato, was the 
son of the cacique of the province of Guale, a proud and 
high-spirited young leader, Avho by no means submitted to 
the requirements of his spiritual fathers, but indulged in 
excesses which scandalized his profession. Father Corpa, 
after trying private remonstrances and warnings in vain, 
thought it necessary to administer to him a public rebuke. 
This aroused the pride of the young chief, and he suddenly 
left the mission, determined upon revenge. He gathered 
from the interior a band of warriors, wdiom he inspired with 
his own hatred against the missionaries. Returning to 
Talomato with his followers under the cover of night, he 
crept up to the mission house, burst open the chapel doors, 
and slew the devoted Father Corpa while at prayer ; then 
severed his head from his body, set it upon a pikestaff, and 
threw his body out into the forest where it could never after- 
wards be found. The scene of this tragedy was in the 
neighborhood of the present Roman Catholic cemetery of 
St. Augustine. 

As soon as this occurence became known in the Indian 



68 THE HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES 

village, all was excitement ; some of the most devoted be- 
wailing the death of their spiritual father, while others 
dreaded the consequences of so rash an act, and shrunk with 
terror from the vengeance of the Spaniards, which they fore- 
saw would soon follow. The young chief of Guale gather- 
ed them around him, and in earnest tones addressed them. 
" Yes," said he, " the friar is dead. It would not have beeii 
done, if he would have allowed us to live as we did before 
we became Christians. We desire to return to our ancient 
customs ; and we must provide for our defense against the 
punishment which will be hurled upon us by the Governor 
of Florida, which, if it be allowed to reach us, will be as 
rigorous for this single frair, as if we had killed them all. — 
For the same power which we possess to destroy this one 
priest, we have to destroy them all." 

His followers approved of what had been done, and said 
there was no doubt but what the same vengeance would fall 
upon them for the death of the one, as for all. 

He then resumed. " Since we shall receive equal punish- 
ment for the death of this one, as though we had killed 
them all, let us regain the liberty of which these friars have 
robbed us, with their promises of good things which we 
have not yet seen, but which they seek to keep us in hope 
of, while they accumulate upon us wdio are called Christians, 
injuries and disgusts, making us quit our wdves, restricting 
us to one only, and prohibiting us from changing her. — 
They prevent us from having our balls, banquets, feasts, 
celebrations, games and contests, so that being deprived of 
them, we lose our ancient valor and skill which we inher- 
ited from our ancestors. Although thej' oppress us with 
labor, refusing to grant even the respite of a few days, and 
although we are disposed to do all they require from us, 
they are not satisfied ; but for everything they reprimand us, 
injuriously treat us, oppress us, lecture us, call us bad 
Christians, and deprive us of all the pleasures which our 
fathers enjoyed, in the hope that they would give us heaven ; 
by these frauds sul)jecting us and holding us under their ab- 
solute control. And what have we to hope except to be 
made slaves ? If we now put them all to death, we shall 
destroy these excrescenses, and force the governor to treat 
us well." 

The majority were carried away by his address, and rung 
out the war-cry of death ai>d defiance. While still eager 
for blood, therr chief led them to the Indian town of Tapo- 
qui, the mission of Father Montes, on the Cano do laLeche ; 



OF ST. AUGUSTINE, FLORIDA. 69 

tumultuously ruslnuo^ in, tliey informed the missionary of 
tiie fate of Father Corpa, and that they sought his own life 
and those of all his order ; and then with uplifted weapons 
bade him prepare to die. He reasoned and remonstrated 
with them, portraying the folly avA wickedness of their in- 
tentions, that the vengeance of the Spaniards would surely 
overtake them, and implored them with tears, that for their 
own sakes rather than liis, they would pause in their mad 
designs. But all in vain ; they were alike insensible to his 
eloquence, and his tears, and pressed forward to surround 
him. Finding all else vain, he begged as a last favor that 
he should be permitted to celebrate mass before he died. 
In this he was probably actuated in part by the hope that 
their fierce hatred might be assuaged by the sight of the 
ceremonies of their faith, or that the delay might afiord 
time for succor from the adjoining garrison. 

The permission was given ; and there for the last time the 
worthy Father put on his robes, which might well be term- 
ed his robes of sacrifice. The wild and savage crowd, 
thirsting for his blood, reclined upon the floor and looked 
on in sullen silence, awaiting the conclusion of the rites. 
The priest alone, standing before the altar, proceeded with 
this most sad and solemn mass, then cast his eyes to heaven 
and knelt in private supplication; where the next moment 
he fell under the blows of his cruel foes, bespattering the 
altar at which he ministered, with his own life's blood. His 
crushed remains were thrown into the fields, that they might 
serve for the fowls of the air or the beasts of the forest; 
but not one would approach it, except a dog, which, rushing 
forward to lay hold upon the body, fell dead upon the spot, 
says the ancient chronicle; and an old Christian Indian, 
recognizing it, gave it sepulture in the forest. 

From thence the ferocious young chief of Guale led his 
followers against several missions, in other parts of the 
country, which he attacked and- destroyed, together with 
their attendant clergy. Thus upon the soil of the ancient 
city was shed the blood of Christian martyrs, who were 
laboring with a zeal well worthy of emulation, to carry the 
truths of religion to the native tribes of Florida. Two hun- 
dred and sixty years have passed away since these sad scenes 
were enacted ; but we cannot even now repress a tear of 
sympathy and a feeling of admiration for those self-denying 
missionaries of the cross, who sealed their faith with their 
blood, and fell victims to their energy and devotion. The 
spectacle of the dying priest struck down at the altar, at- 



70 THE HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES 

tired in liis sacred vestments, and perhaps imploring pardon 
upon his murderers, cannot fail to call up in the heart of the 
most insensible, something more than a passing emotion. 

The zeal of the Franciscans was only increased by this 
disaster, and each succeeding year brought additions to their 
number. They pushed their missions into the interior of 
the country so rapidly that in less than two years they had 
established through the principal towns of the Indians no 
less than twenty mission houses. The presumed remains 
of these establishments are still occasionally to be found 
throughout the interior of the country. 



OF ST. AUGUSTINE, FLORIDA. 71 



CHAPTER XII. 

SUBJECTION OF THE APALACHIAN INDIANS— CONSTKUC- 
TION OF THE FOET, SEA WALL, &c.— 1638— 1700. 

In the year 1638, hostilities were entered into between the 
Spanish settlements on the coast, and the Apalachian Indi- 
ans, who occupied the country in the neighborhood of the 
river Suwanee. The Spaniards soon succeeded in subduing 
their Indian foes; and in 1640, large numbers of the Apala- 
chian Indians were brought to St. Augustine, and in alleged 
punishment for their outbreak, and with a sagacious eye to 
the convenience of the arrangement, were forced to labor 
upon the public works and fortifications of the city. At ' 
this period the English settlements along the coast to the 
northward, had begun to be formed, much to the uneasi- 
ness and displeasure of the Spanish crown, which for along 
period claimed, by virtue of exploration and occupation, as 
well as by the ancient papal grant of Alexander, all the 
eastern coast of the United States. Their missionaries had 
penetrated Virginia before the settlement at Jamestown ; 
and they had built a fort in South Carolina, and kept up a 
garrison for some years in it. But the Spanish government \ 
had become too feeble to compete with either the English 
or the French on the seas ; and with the loss of their cele- 
brated Armada, perished forever their pretensions as a 
naval power. They were therefore forced to look to the 
safety of their already established settlements in Florida ; 
and the easy capture of the fort at St. Augustine by the 
passing squadron of Drake, evinced the necessit}^ of works 
of a much more formidable character. 

It is evident that the fort, or castle as it was usually 
designated, had been then commenced, although its form 
was afterwards changed ; and for sixty years subsequently, 
these unfortunate Apalachian Indians were compelled to 
labor upon the works, until in 1680, upon the recommenda- 
tion of their mission Fathers, they were relieved from fur- 
ther compulsory labor, with the understanding that in case 
of necessity they would resume their labors. 

In 1648, St. Augustine is described to have contained 



"^ 



72 THE HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES 

more than three Imndred householders [vecinos), a flourish- 
ing moiiastry of the order of St. Francis with lifty Francis 
cans, men very zealous for the conversion of the Indians, 
and regarded by their countrymen with the highest venera- 
tion. Besides these there were in the city alone, a vicar, a 
parochial curate, a superior sacristan, and a chaplain at- 
tached to the castle. The parish church was built of wood, 
the Bishop of Cuba, it is said, not being able to aiibrd any- 
thing better, his whole income being but four hundred pezos 
per annum, which he shared with Florida; and sometimes 
he expended much more than his receipts. 

In 1665, Captain Davis, one of the English buccaneers 
and freebooters (then very numerous in the West Indies), 
with a fleet of seven or eight vessels came on the coast 
from Jamaica, to intercept the Spanish plate fleet on its return 
from New Spain to Europe ; but being disappointed in this 
scheme, he proceded along the coast of Florida, and came oft 
St. Augustine, where he landed and marched directly upon 
the town, which he sacked and plundered, /without meeting^ 
the least opposition or resistance from the Spaniards, 
although they had then a garrison of two hundred men 
in the fort, which at that time was an octagon, fortified and 
defended by round towers. 

The fortifications, if this account be true, were probably^ 
then \'ery incomplete ; and with a vastly inferior force it is 
not surprising that they did not undertake what could only 
have been an ineflectual resistance. It does not appear that 
the fort was taken ; and the inhabitants retired probably 
within its enclosure with their valuables.* -^ 

In the Spanish account of the various occurrences in this 
country, it is mentioned that in 1681, " the English having 
examined a province of Florida, distant twelve leagues from 
another called New Castle, where the air is pleasant, the 
climate mild, and the lands very fertile, called it Salvania ; 
and that knowing these advantages, a Quaker, or Shaker (a 
sect barbarous impudent, and abominable), called William 
Penn, obtained a grant of it from Charles II., King of Eng- 
land, and made great efforts to colonize it." Such was the 
extent then claimed for the province of Florida, and such 
the opinion entertained of the Quakers. 

In 1681, Don Juan Marquez Cabrera, applied himself at 
once, upon his appointment to the governorship of Florida, 
to finishing the castle ; and collected large quantities of 

* I do not find any account of this expedition and capture of St. Augus- 
tine in the Ensayo Cronologica 



OF ST. AUGUSTINE, FLORIDA. /o 

stone, lime, timber, and iron, more than sufficient subse- 
quently to complete it. About this period, a new impulse 
was given to the extension of the missions for converting 
the Indians ; and large reinforcements of the clerical force 
were received from Mexico, Havana, and Spain ; and many 
of them received salaries from the crown. A considerable 
Indian town is spoken of at tliis period, as existing six hun- 
dred varas north of St. Augustine, and called Macarasi, 
which would correspond to the place formerly occupied by 
Judge Douglas, deceased, and which has long been called 
Macariz. Other parts of the country were known by vari- 
ous names. Amelia Island was the province of Guale. 
The southern part of the country was known as the 
province of Carlos. Indian river was the province of Ys. 
Westwardly was the province of Apalachie; while smaller 
divisions were designated by the names of the chiefs. 

It is hardly to be doubted, that the same spirit of oppres- 
sion towards the Indians, exercised in the other colonies 
under Spanish dominition, existed in Florida. It has 
been already mentioned that the Apalachians were kept at 
labor upon the fortifications of St. Augustine ; and in 1680, 
the Yemasees, who had always been particularly peaceful 
and manageable, and whose principal town was Macarisqui, 
near St. Augustine, revolted at the rule exercised over them 
by the Spanish authorities at St. Augustine, in consequence 
of the execution of one of their chiefs by the order of the 
governor ; and six years afterwards they made a general 
attack upon the Spaniards, drove them within the walls of 
the castle, and became such mortal enemies to them, that 
they never gave a Spaniard quarter, waylaying, and invaria- 
bly massacring, any stragglers they could intercept outside 
of the fort. 

In 1670, an English settlement was established near Port 
Royal, South Carolina, one hundred and five years subse- 
quent to the settlement of St. Augustine. The Spaniards 
regarded it as an infringement upon their rights ; and al- 
though a treaty, after this settlement, had been made be- 
tween Spain and England, confirming to the latter all her 
settlements and islands, yet as no boundaries or limits were 
mentioned, their respective rights and boundaries remained 
a subject of dispute for seventy years. 

About 1675, the Spanish authorities at St. Augustine, 
having intelligence from white servants who fled to them, of 
the discontented and miserable situation 'of the colony in 
Carolina, advanced with a party under arms as far as the 



74 THE HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES 

Island of St. Helena, to dislodge or destroy the settlers. ■ A 
treacherous colonist of the name of Fitzpatrick, deserted 
to the Spaniards; but the governor, Sir John Yeamans, 
having received a reinforcement, held his ground; and a 
detachment of tifty volunteers under Colonel Godfrey, 
marched against the enemy, forcing them to retire from the 
Island of St. Helena,, and retreat to St. Augustine.* 

Ten years afterwards, three gallej-s sailed from St. Augus- 
tine, and attacked a Scotch and English settlement at Port 
Royal, which had been founded by Lord Cardross, in 1681. 
The settlement was weak and unprotected, and the Si^an- 
iards fell upon them, killed several, whipped many, plundered 
all, and broke up the colony. Flushed with success, they 
continued their depredations on Edisto River, burning the 
houses, wasting the plantations, and robbing the settlers ; 
and finished their marauding expedition by capturing the 
brother of Governor Morton, and burning him alive in one 
of the galleys which a hurricane had driven so high upon 
land as to make it impossible to have it re-launched. Such 
at least is the English account of the matter ; and they say 
that intestine troubles alone prevented immediate and sig- 
nal retaliation by the South Carolinians. f 

One Captain Don Juan de Aila went to Spain in the 
year 1687, in his own vessel, to procure additional forces 
and ammunition for the garrison at St. Augustine. He re- 
ceived the men and munitions desired; and as a reward for 
his diligence and patriotism, he also received the privilege 
of carrying merchandise, duty free ; being also allowed to 
take twelve Spanish negroes for the cultivation of the fields 
of Florida, of whom it is said there was a great want in 
that province. By a mischance, he was only able to carry 
one negro there, with the troops and other cargo, and was 
received in the city with universal joy. This was the first 
occasion of the reception of African slaves ; although as 
has been heretofore mentioned, it was made a part of the 
royal stipulation with Menendez, that he should bring over 
five hundred negro slaves. 

Don Diego de Quiroga y Losada, the governor of Florida 
in 1690, finding that the sea was making dangerous en- 
croachments upon the shores of the town, and had reached 
even the houses, threatening to swallow them up, and ren 

* Carroll's S. C, Vol. 1, p. G2. 
f Kivers' S. C. Hist. Coll. p. 143. Do. Appendix, 425. Carroll's Coll., 
2(1 vol., 350. 



OF ST. AUGUSTINE, FLdRIDA. 75 

der useless the fort which had cost so much to put in the 
state of completion in which it then was, called a public 
meeting of the chief men and citizens of the place, and pro- 
posed to them that in order to escape the danger which 
menaced them, and to restrain the force of the sea, they 
should construct a wall, which should run from the castle 
and cover and protect the city from all danger of the sea. 
The inhabitants not only approved of his proposal, but 
began the work with so much zeal, that the soldiers gave 
more than seventeen hundred dollars of their wages, al- 
though they were very much behind, not having been paid 
in six years ; with which the governor began to make the 
necessary preparations, and sent forward a dispatch to the 
home government upon the subject. 

The council of war of the Indies approved, in the follow- 
ing year, of the work of the sea wall, and directed the 
viceroy of Kew Spain to furnish ten thousand dollars for it, 
and directed that a plan and estimate of the work should 
be forwarded. Quiroga was succeeded in the governorship of 
Florida, by Don Laureano de Torres, who went forward with 
the work of the sea wall, and received for this purpose the 
means furnished by the soldiers, and one thousand dollars 
more, which they oifered besides the two thousand dollars, 
and likewise six thousand dollars which had come from 
iSTew Spain, remitted by the viceroy. Count de Galleo, for 
the purpose of building a tower, as a look-out to observe the 
surrounding Indian settlements. Whether this tower was 
erected, or where, we have no certain knowledge. The 
towers erected on the governor's palace and at the northeast 
angle of the fort, were intencled as look-outs both sea and 
landward. 

The statements made in reference to the building of this 
wall, from the castle as far as the city, confirm the opinion 
previously expressed, that the ancient and early settlement 
of the place was south of the public square, as the remains 
of the ancient sea wall extend to the basin at the Plaza. 
The top of this ol'd sea wall is still visible along the centre 
of Bay street, where it occasionally appears above the level 
of the street ; and its general plan and arrangement are 
shown on several old maps and plans of the city. Upon a 
plan of the city made in 1665, it is represented as terminat- 
ing in a species of break-water at the public square. It is 
unnesessary to add that the present sea wall is a much su- 
perior structure to the old, and extends above twice the 



76 THE HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES 

distance. Its cost is said to have been one hundred thou- 
sand dollars, and it was building from 1837 to 1843. 

In the year 1700, the work on the sea wall had progressed 
but slowly, although the governor had employed thirty 
stone-cutters at a time, and had eight yoke of oxen drawing 
stone to the landing, and two lime-kilns all the while at 
work. But the money previously provided, and considera- 
ble additional funds was requisite, resembling in this respect 
its successor. The new governor, De Cuniga, took the 
matter in hand, as he had much experience in fortifications. 
The defenses of the fort are spoken of as being at the time 
too weak to resist artillery, and the sea wall as being but a 
sligrht work. 



OF ST. AUGUSTINE, FLORIDA. 77 



CHAPTER XIII. 

ATTACK ON ST. AUGUSTINE BY GOVERNOR MOORE OF SOUTH 

CAROLINA DIFFICULTIES WITH THE GEORGIANS. 

1702—1732. 

Hostilities had broken out between England and Spain 
in 1702. The English settlements in Carolina only num- 
bered six or seven thousand inhabitants, when Governor 
Moore, who was an ambitious and energetic man, but with 
serious defects of character, led an invading force from Car- 
olina against St. Augustine. The pretense was to retaliate 
for okHnjuries, and, by taking the initiative, to prevent an 
attack upon themselves. The real motive was said b}^ Gov. 
Moore's opponents at home, to have been the acquisition of 
military reputation and private gain. 

The plan of the expedition embraced a combined land 
and naval attack : and for this purpose six hundred provin- 
cial militia were embodied, with an equal number of Indian 
allies ; a portion of the militia, with the Indians, were to go 
inland by boats and by land, under the command of Col. 
Daniel, who is spoken of as a good officer, while the main 
body proceeded with thegovenor by s^ain several merchant 
schooners and ships which had been impressed for the service. 

The Spaniards, wiio had received intimations of the con- 
templated attack, placed themselves in the best posture of de- 
fense in their power, and laid up provisions in the castle to 
withstand a long siege. 

The forces un'der Col. Daniel arrived in advance of the 
naval fleet of the expedition, and immediately marched upon 
the town. The inhabitants, upon his approach, retired with 
their most valuable eflects within the spacious walls of the 
castle, and Col. Daniel entered and took possession of the 
town, the larger part of which, it must be recollected, was 
at some distance from the castle. 

The quaint description of these events, given by Oldmixon, 
is as follows : — 

" Col. Eob. Daniel, a very brave man, commanded a party 
who w^ere to go up the river in periagas, and come upon 



78 THE IIISTOKY AND ANTIQUITIES 

Augustino on the land side, while the Governour sailed 
thither, and attacked it by sea. They both set out in Au- 
gust, 1702. Col. Daniel, in his way, took St. Johns, a small 
Spanish settlement; as also St. ]\lary's, another little village 
belonging to the Spaniards ; after which he proceeded to 
Augustino, came before the town, entered and took it, Col. 
]\Ioor not being yet arrived with the fleet. 

"The inhabitants having notice of the approach of the 
English, had packed up their best effects and retired with 
them into the castle, which was surrounded by a very deep 
and broad moat. 

" They had laid up provisions there for four months, and 
resolved to defend themselves to the last extremity. How- 
ever, Col. Daniel found a considerable booty in the town. 
The next day the Governour came ashore, and his troops 
following him, they entrenched, posted their guards in the 
church, and blocked up the castle. The English held pos- 
session of the town a whole month ; but finding the}' could 
do nothing for want of mortars and bombs, they despatched 
away a sloop for Jamaica ; but the commander of the sloop, 
instead of going thither, came to Carolina out of fear of 
treachery. Finding others offered to go in his stead, he 
proceeded in the voyage himself, after he had lain some time 
at Charlestown. 

" The Governour all this while lay before the castle of 
Augustino, in expectation of the return of the sloop, which 
heanng nothing of, he sent Col. Daniel, who was the life of 
the action, to Jamaica on the same errand. 

" This gentleman, being heart}' in the design, procured a 
supply of bombs, and returned towards Augustino. But in 
the mean time two ships appeared in the offing, which being 
taken to be two very large men of war, the Governour tho't 
fit to raise the siege and abandon his ships, with a great 
quantity of stores, ammunition, and provisions, to the en- 
em}'. Upon which the two men of war entered the port of 
Augustino, and took the Governour's ships. Some say he 
burnt them himself. Certain it is tliey were lost to the Eng- 
lish, and that he returned to Charles-Town over land 300 
miles from Augustino. The two men of war that were 
thought to be so large, proved to be two small frigates, one 
of 82, and the other of 16 guns.* 

* There must be an error, of course, in this statement of an 82-gun ship 
entering St. Augustine, as the depth of water would never admit a vessel 
of over 300 tons : probably 82 should read 12 tons. o. R. r. 



OF ST. AUGUSTINE, FLORIDA. 79 

" When Col. Daniel came back to St. Augustino, he was 
chased, but got away ; and Col. Moor retreated with no 
great honor homewards. The periagas lay at St. Johns, 
whither the Governour retired and so to Charles-Town, hav- 
ing lost but two men in the whole expedition." 

Arratomakaw, king of the Yamioseans, who commanded 
the Indians, retreated to the periagas with the rest, and there 
slept upon his oars with a great deal of bravery and uncon- 
cern. The governor's soldiers, taking a false alarm, and 
thinking the Spaniards were coming, did not like this slow 
pace of the Indian king in his flight, and to quicken him into 
it, bade him make more haste. But he replied, "ISTo; 
though your governor leaves you, I will not stir till I have 
seen all my men before me." 

The Spanish accounts say that he burned the town, and 
this statement is confirmed by the report made on the 
18th July, 1740, by a committee of the House of Com- 
mons of the province of South Carolina, in which it is 
said, referring to these transactions, that Moore was obliged 
to retreat, hut not luithout first burning the town.* 

It seems that the plunder carried off by Moore's troops 
was considerable ; as his enemies charged at the time that 
he sent ofiE' a sloop-load to Jamaica, and in an old coloi^ial 
document of South Carolina it is represented " that the late 
unfortunate, ill-contrived, and worst managed expedition 
against St. Augustine, was principally set on foot by the ' 
said late governor and his adherents ; and that if any per- 
son in the said late assembly undertook to speak against it, 
and to show how unfit and unable we were at that time for 
such an attempt, he was presently looked upon by them as 
an enemy and traitor to his country, and reviled and af- 
fronted in the said assembly ; although the true design of 
the said expedition was no other than catching and maldng 
slaves of Indians for private advantage, and impoverishing 
the country. * * * And that the expedition was to enrich 
themselves will appear particularly, because whatsoever 
booty, as rich silks, great quantity of church plate, with a 
great many other costly church ornaments and utensils taken 
by:_our soldiers at St. Augustine, are now detained in the 
possession of the said late governor and his ofiicers, contrary 
to an act of assembly made for an equal division of the same 
amongst the soldiers." f 

-» Carroll's Hist. Coll., vol. 2, p. 3-52. 
•j- Elvers' Hist. Sketches, S. C, app. 456, 



80 THE HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES 

The Spanish accounts of this expedition of Moore's are 
very meao:er. They designate him as the governor of St. 
George, by Avhich name they called the harbor of Charles- 
ton ; and they also speak of the plunder of the town, and 
the burning of the greater part of the houses. Don Joseph 
de Curriga was the then governor of the city, and had re- 
ceived just previous to the English attack, reinforcements 
from Havana, and had repaired and strengthened the fortifi- 
cations. 

The retreat of the English was celebrated with great re- 
joicing by the Spaniards, who had been for three months 
shut up within the limited space of the walls of the castle ; 
and they gladly repaired their ruined homes, and made good 
the ravages of the English invasion. An English account 
says that the two vessels which appeared off the bar and 
caused Moore's precipitate retreat, contained but two hun- 
dred men, and that had he awaited Colonel Daniel's return 
Tvith the siege guns and ammunition, the castle would have 
fallen into their hands. 

In the same year, the king of Spain, alarmed at the dan- 
gers which menaced his possessions in Florida, gave greater 
attention to the strengthening the defenses of St. Augus- 
tine, and forwarded considerable reinforcements to the gar- 
rison, as well as additional supplies of munitions. 

The works were directed to be strengthened, which Gov- 
ernor Cuniga thought not as strong as had been represented, 
and that the sea wall in the process of erection was insuf- 
ficient for the purpose for which it was designed. 

Sixty years had elapsed since the Apalachian Indians had 
been conquered and compelled to labor upon the fortifica- 
tions of St. Augustine ; their chiefs now asked that the}" 
might be relieved from further compulsory labor; and after 
the usual number of references and reports and informa- 
tions, through the Spanish circumlocution offices, this was 
graciously granted in a suspensory form, until their services 
should be again required. 

During the year 1712, a great scarcity of provisions, caused 
by the failure of the usual supply vessels, reduced the inhab- 
itants of St. Augustine to the verge of starvation; and, for 
two or three months, they were obliged to live upon horses, 
cats, dogs, and other disgusting animals. It seems strange, 
that after a settlement of" nearly one hundred and fifty years, 
the Spaniards in Florida should still be dependant upon the 
importation of provisions for their support ; and that any- 
thing like the distress indicated should prevail, with the 



OF ST. AUGUSTINE, FLORIDA. 81 

abundant resources they had, from the fish, oysters, turtle, 
and clams of the sea, and. the arrow-root and. cabbage-tree 
palm of the land. 

The English settlements were now extending into the 
interior portions of South Carolina ; and the French had 
renewed their efforts at settlement and colonization upon 
the rivers discharging into the Gulf of Mexico. All three 
nations were competitors for the trade with the Indians, and 
kept up an intriguing rivalship for this trade for more than 
a hundred years. 

There seems to have been at this period a policy pursued 
by the Spanish authorities in Florida, of the most repre- 
hensible character. The strongest efforts were made to 
attach all the Indian tribes to the Spanish interest ; and 
they were encouraged to carry on a system of plunder and 
anno3'ance upon the English settlements of Carolina. They 
particularly seized upon all the negroes they could obtain, 
and carried them to the governor at St. Augustine, who 
invariably refused to surrender them, alleging that he was 
acting under the instructions of his government in so doing. 

In 1704, Governor Moore had made a sweeping and vig- 
orous excursion against the Indian towns in Middle Florida, 
all of Avhom were in the Spanish interest ; and had broken 
up and destroyed the towns and missions attached to them. 
In 1725, Col. Palmer determined, since no satisfaction could 
be obtained for the incursions of the Spanish Indians, and 
the loss of their slaves, to make a descent upon them ; and 
with a party of three hundred men entered Florida, with an 
intention of visiting upon the province all the desolation of 
retributive warfare. 

He went up to the very gates of St. Augustine, and com- 
pelled the inhabitants to seek protection within the castle. 
In his course he swept every thing before him, destroying 
every house, field and improvement within his reach ; car- 
rying off the"live stock, and every thing else of value. The 
Spanish Indians who fell within his power, were slain in 
large numbers, and many were taken prisoners. Outside of 
the walls of St. Augustine, nothing was left undestroyed ; 
and the Spanish authorities received a memorable lesson in 
the law of retribution. 



82 THE HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES 



CHAPTER XIV. 

SIEGE OF ST. AUGUSTINE, BY OGLETHOEPE— 1732— 1740 

Difficulties existed for many years subsequently between 
the Spanish and English settlements. In 1732, Oglethorpe 
planted his colony in Georgia, and extended his settlements 
along the coast towards Florida, claiming and occupying the 
country up to the margin of the St. Johns, and established 
a post at St. George Island. This was deemed an invasion 
of the territory of Spain ; and the post was attacked un- 
fairly, as the English say, and some of their men murdered. 
Oglethorpe, upon this, acting under the instructions of the 
home government, commenced hostilities by arranging a 
joint attack of the forces of South Carolina and Georgia, 
with a view to the entire conquest of Florida. 

The instructions of the king of England to Oglethorpe, 
were, that he should make a naval and land attack upon St. 
Augustine ; " and if it shall please God to give you success, 
you are either to demolish the fort and bastions, or put a 
garrison in it, in case you shall have men enough for that 
purpose ; which last, it is thought, will be the best way to 
prevent the Spaniards from endeavoring to retake and set- 
tle the said place again, at any time hereafter." * 

Don Manuel Monteano was then governor of Florida, and 
in command of fhe garrison. The city and castle were 
previously in a poor condition to withstand an attack from 
a well-prepared i\^e ; and on the 11th I^ovember, 1737, Gov- 
ernor Mouteano writes to the governor-general of Cuba, 
that "the fort of this place is its only defense ; it has no 
casemates for the shelter of the men, nor the necessary ele- 
vation to the counter-scarp, nor covert ways, nor ravelins to 
the curtains, nor other exterior works that could give time 
for a long defense ; but it is thus naked outside, as it is 
without soul within, for there are no. cannon that could be 
tired twenty-four hours, and though there were, artillery-men 
to manage them are wanting." 

Under the superintendence of an able officer of engineers, 

* State Papers of Georgia. Ga. Hist. Soc. 



OF ST. AUGUSTINE, FLORIDA. 83 

Don Antonio de Arredondo, the works were put in order ; 
the ratnpiirts were heightened and casemated ; a covered 
way was made, by phmting and embanking four thousand 
stakes ; bomb-proof vaults were constructed, and entrench- 
ments thrown up around the town, protected by ten salient 
angles, many of which are still visible. The garrison of the 
town w.;s about seven hundred and forty soldiers, according 
to Governor Monteano's return of troops. On the 25th 
March, 1740, the total population of St. Augustine, of all 
classes, was two thousand one hundred and forty-three. 

Previous to his attack upon the place, General Oglethorpe 
obtained the following information from prisoners Avhom he 
took at the outposts. He says : " They agree that there are 
fifty pieces of cannon in the castle at St. Augustine, several 
of which are of brass, from twelve to forty-eight pounds. 
It has four bastions. The walls are of stone, and casemated. 
The internal square is sixty yards. The ditch is forty feet 
wide, and twelve feet deep, six of which is sometimes filled 
with water. The counterscarp is faced with stone. They 
have lately made a covered way. The town is fortified with 
an entrenchment, salient angles and redoubts, which inclose 
about half a mile in length, and a quarter of a mile in width.. 
The inhabitants and garrison, men, women and children.,, 
amount to above two thousand five hundred. For the gar- 
rison, the kingpa3'S eight companies, sent from Spain two. 
years since for the invasion of Georgia ; upon establishment 
fifty-three men each, three companies of foot and one of ar-. 
tillery, of the old garrison, and one troop of horse one hun- 
dred each upon establishment; of these, one hundred are at 
St. Marks, ten days' march from St. Augustine ; upon the 
Gulf of Mexico, one hundred are disposed in several small 
forts." 

Of these out-posts, there were two, one on eacli side of 
the river St. Johns — at Picolata and immediately opposite-— 
and at Diego. The purpose of the forts at Picolata was to 
guard the passage of the river, and to keep open the com- 
munication with St. Marks and Pensacola; and when threat- 
ened with the invasion of Oglethorpe, messengers were dis- 
patched to the governor of Pensacola for aid, and also to 
Mexico by the same route. The fort at Diego was but a 
small work, erected by Don Diego de Spinosa, upon his own 
estate ; and the remains of it, with one or two cannon, are 
still visible. Fort Moosa was an out-post at the place now 
known by that name, on the North River, about two miles 
north of St. Augustine. A fortified line, a, considerable por- 



84 THE HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES 

tion of which may now be traced, extended across from the 
stockades on the !St. Sebastian to Fort Moosa. Communi- 
cation by a tide-creek existed through the marshes, between 
the castle at St. Augustine and Fort Moosa. 

Oglethorpe first attacked the two forts at Picolata, one of 
which, called Fort Poppa, or St. Francis de Poppa, was a 
place of some strength. Its remains still exist, about one- 
fourth of a mile north of the termination of the Bellamy 
Road, its eartliAvorks being still strongly marked. 

After a slight resistance, both forts fell into liis hands, 
much to the annoyance of Governor Monteano. Oglethorpe 
speaks of Fort Francis as being of much importance, " as 
commanding the passes from St. Augustine to Mexico, and 
into the country of the Creek Indians, and also being upon 
the ferry, where the troops which come from St. Augustine 
must pass." He found in it, one mortar piece, two car- 
riages, three small guns, ammunition, one hundred and fifty 
shells, and fifty glass bottles full of gunpowder, with fuses — 
a somewhat novel missile of war. 

The English general's plan of operation was, that the 
crews and troops upon the vessels should land, and throw 
up batteries upon Anastasia Island, from thence bombard- 
ing the town ; while he himself designed to lead the attack 
on the land side. Having arrived in position, he gave the 
signal of attack to the fleet, by sending up a rocket ; but no 
response came from the vessels, and he had the mortification 
of being obliged to withdraw his troops. The troops were 
unable to eifect a landing from the vessels, in consequence 
of a number of armed Spanish galleys having been drawn 
up inside the bar ; so that no landing could be made except 
under a severe fire, while the galleys were protected from an 
attack by the ships, in consequence of the shoal water. 

He then prepared to reduce the town by a regular siege, 
with a strict blockade by sea. He hoped, by driving the 
inhabitants into the castle, so to encumber the governor with 
useless mouths, as to reduce him to the necessity of a sur- 
render, to avoid starvation. The town was placed under the 
range of his heavy artillery and mortars, and soon became 
untenable, forcing the citizens generally to seek the shelter 
of the fort. 

Col. Vanderduysen was posted at Point Quartel ; and oth- 
ers of the troops upon Anastasia Island, and the north 
beach. Three batteries were erected : one on Anastasia Isl- 
and, called the Poza, which consisted of four eighteen- 
pounders and one nine-pounder; one on the point of the 



OF ST. AUGUSTINE, FLORIDA. 85 

wood of the island, mounting two eighteen-pounders. The 
remains of the Poza battery are still to be seen, almost as 
distinctly marked as on the day of its erection. Four mor- 
tars and forty cohorns were employed in the siege. 

The siege began on the 12th June ; and on the 25th June 
a night sortie was made from the castle against a portion of 
the troops under command of Col. Palmer, who were en- 
camped atFortMoosa, including a company of ScotchHigh- 
landers, numbering eighty-five men, under their chief, Capt. 
Mcintosh, all equipped in Highland dress. This attack was 
entirely successful, and the English sustained a severe loss, 
their colonel being killed, with twenty Highlanders, twenty- 
seven soldiers, and a number of Indians. 

This aftair at Fort Moosa has generalh^ been considered 
as a surprise, and its disastrous results as the consequence 
of carelessness and disobedience of the orders of Oglethorpe. 
Captain Mcintosh, the leader of the Highlandei's, was taken 
prisoner, and finally transferred to Spain. From his prison 
at St. Sebastian, under date of 20th June, 1741, he gives the 
following account of the matter: — 

" I listed seventy men, all in Highland dress, and marched 
to the siege, and was ordered to scout nigh St. Augustine 
and molest the enemy, while the general and the rest of his' 
little army went to an island where we could have no succor 
of them. I punctually obeyed my orders, until seven hun- 
dred Spaniards sallied out from the garrison, an hour before 
daylight. They did not surprise us, for we were all under 
arms, ready to receive them, which we did briskly, keeping 
a constant tiring for a quarter of an hour, when they prest 
on with numbers ; was obliged to take our swords until the 
most of us were shot and cut to pieces. You are to observe 
we had but eighty meji ; and the engagement was in view 
of the rest of our army, but they could not come to our as- 
sistance, by being in the foresaid island, under the enemy's 
guns. They had twenty prisoners, a few got off, the rest 
killed; as we were well informed by some of themselves, 
they had three hundred killed on the spot,* besides several 
wounded. We were all stripped naked of clothes, brought 
to St. Augustine, where we remained three months in close 
confinement. t 

- - 

* This statement is unsupported by either Spanish or English authority. 
The writer of the letter, through want of familiarity with their language, 
misunderstood his informants, in all probability, as to the extent of their 
loss. 

f MSS. in Geo. Hist. Soc. Library. 



86 THE HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES 

This officer was Capt. John Mcintosh ; and his son, Brig. 
Gen. Mcintosh, then a youth of fourteen, was present in 
the engao-ement, and escaped witliout injury. Tlie family 
of the Mclntoshes have always been conspicuous in the his- 
tory of Georgia. 

The large number of persous collected withiu tlic walls of 
the castle, and under the protection of its battlemeuts, soon 
gave rise to serious apprehensions on the part of the 
besieged, of being reduced by starvation to the necessity of 
a speedy surrender. The batteries of Oglethorpe were 
planted at so great a distance that he could produce but 
little effect by his shot or shells upon the castle, although 
he rendered the city itself untenable. The heat of the sea- 
son and the exposure, to which the Provincial militia were 
unaccustomed, soon produced considerable sickness and dis- 
couragement in the invading force, and affected Oglethorpe 
himself. 

The Spanish governor sent most urgent messages to the 
governor of the island of Cuba, which were transmitted by 
runners along the coast, and thence by small vessels across 
to Havana. In one of these letters he says, "My greatest 
anxiety is for provisions; and if they do not come, there is 
no doubt of our dying by the hands of hunger." In another, 
he says, "I assure your Lordship, that it is impossible to 
express the confusion of the place ; for we have no protec- 
tion except the fort, and all the rest is open field. The 
families have abandoned their houses, and come to put 
themselves under the guns, which is pitiable ; though 
nothing gives me anxiety but the want of provisions ; and if 
3'our Lordship for want of competent force cannot send relief, 
we all must perish." * 

With the exception of the Fort Moosa affair, the hostili- 
ties were confined to the exchange of shots between the 
■castle and the batteries. Considerable discrepancy exists 
between the Spanish and English accounts, as to the period 
when the garrison was relieved: it was the communication 
•of the fact of relief having been received, which formed the 
•ostensible ground of abandoning the siege by Oglethorpe; 
but the Spanish governor asserts that these provision ves- 
sels did not arrive until the siege was raised. The real fact, 
I am inclined to think, is that the provision vessels arrived 
at Mosquito, a harbor sixty miles below, where they were to 
:await orders from Gov. Mouteano, as to the mode of getting 

* Monteano, MSS., Arcbives St. Au£rustine. 



OF ST. AUGUSTINE, FLORIDA. 87 

discharged,* and that the information of their arrival, being 
known at St. Augustine, was communicated to the English, 
and thus induced their raising the siege ; in fact, the hope 
of starving out the garrison was tlie only hope left to Ogle- 
thorpe ; his strength was insufficient for an assault, and his 
means inadequate to reduce the castle, which was well 
manned and well provided with means of defense. 

It was in truth a hopeless task, under the circumstances, 
for Oglethorpe to persevere ; and it is no impeachment of 
his courage or his generalship, that he was unable to take a 
fortress of really very respectable strength. 

The siege continued from the 13th June to the 20th July, a 
period of thirty-eight days. The bombardment was kept 
up twenty days, but owing to the lightness of the guns and 
the long range, but little effect was produced on tbe strong 
walls of the castle. Its spongy, infrangible walls received 
the balls from the batteries like a cotton bale, or sand bat- 
tery, almost without making an impression ; this may be 
seen on examination, since the marks remain to this day, as 
they were left at the end of the siege, one hundred and 
seventeen years ago. 

The prosecution of the siege having become impracticable, 
preparations were made for retiring; and Oglethorpe, as a 
pardonable and characteristic protest against the assumption 
of his acting from any coercion, with drums beating and 
banners displayed, crossed over to the main land, and 
marched in full view of the castle, to his encampment three 
miles distant, situated probably at the point now known as 
Pass Navarro. 

Great credit and respect have been deservedly awarded to 
Governor Monteano, for the courage, skill, and perseve- 
rance with which he sustained the siege. 

It is well known that the English general had, in a few 
months, an ample opportunity of showing to his opponent 
that his skill in defending his own territory under the most 
disadvantageous circumstances, was equal to that of the ac- 
complished Monteano himself. The defense of Frederica, 
and signal defeat of the Spanish forces at Fort Simons, will 
ever challange for Oglethorpe the highest credit for the 
most sterling qualities of a good general and a great man. 

Two years subsequently, Oglethorpe again advanced into 
Florida, appeared before the gates of St. Augustine, and 
endeavored to induce the garrison to march out to meet 
him ; but they kept within their walls, and Oglethorpe in 

* Monteano, MS. Letter of, 28th July, 1740. 



88 THE HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES 

one of his despatches says, in the irritation caused by their 
prudence, "that they were so meek there was no provoking 
them." As in this incursion he had no object in view but a 
devastation of the country, and harrassing the enemy, he 
shortly withdrew his forces. 

A committee of the South Carolina House of Commons, 
in a report upon the Oglethorpe expedition, tlius speaks of 
St. Augustine, evidently smarting under the disappointment 
of their recent defeat. 

"July 1st, 1741." 

"St. Augustine, in the possession of the crown of Spain, 
is well known to be situated but little distance from hence, 
in latitude thirty degrees, in Florida, the next territory to 
us. It is maintained by his Catholic Majesty, partly to pre- 
serve his claim to Florida, and partly that it may be of ser- 
vice to the plate-fleets when coming through the gulf, by 
showing lights to them along the coast, and by being ready 
to give assistance when any of them are cast away there- 
about. The castle, by the largest account, doth not cover 
more than one acre of ground, but is allowed on all hands 
to be a place of great strength, and hath been usually 
garrisoned with about three or four hundred men of the 
king's regular troops. The town is not very large, and but 
inditferently fortiiied. The inhabitants, many of which are 
mulattoes of savage dispositions, are all in the king's pay ; 
also being registered from their birth, and a severe penalty 
laid on any master of a vessel that shall attempt to carry any 
of them off. These are formed into a militia, and have been 
generally computed to be near about the same number as 
the regular troops. Thus relying wholly on the king's pay for 
their subsistence, their thoughts never turned to trade or even 
agriculture, but depending on foreign supplies for the most 
common necessaries of life,* they spent their time in uni- 
versal, perpetual idleness. From such a state, mischievous 
inclinations naturally spring up in such a people ; and 
having leisure and opportunity, ever since they had a neigh- 
bor the fruits of whose industry excited their desires and 
envy, they have not failed to carry those inclinations into 
action as often as they could, without the least regard to 
peace or war subsisting between the two crowns of Great 
Britain and Spain, or to stipulations agreed upon between 
the two governments."* 

*Report upon Expedition to St. Augustine. Carroll's Coll. 2d vol., p. 
354. 



OF ST. AUGUSTINE, FLORIDA. 89 

Among the principal grievances set forth in this report, 
was the carrying oti'and enticing and harboring their slaves, 
of which a number of instances are enumerated; and they 
attributed the negro insurrection which occurred in South 
Carolina, in 1739, to the connivance and agency of the 
Spanish authorities at St. Augustine ; and they proceed in a 
climax of indignation to hurl their denunciation at the sup- 
posed authors of their misfortunes, in the following terms : 
"With indignation we looked at St. Augustine (like another 
Sallee!) That den of thieves and ruffians! receptacle of 
debtors, servants and slaves ! bane of industry and society! 
and revolved in our minds all the injuries this province had 
received from thence, ever since its first settlement. That 
they had from first to last, in times of profoundest peace, 
both publickly and privately, by themselves, Indians, and 
ISTegroes, in every shape molested us, not without some in- 
stances of uncommon cruelty."* 

It is very certain there was on each side, enough supposed 
causes of provocation to induce a far from amiable state of 
feeling between these neighboring colonies. 

* Carroll's Hist. Coll. S. C. p. 359. 



90 THE HISTORY AN^ ANTIQUITIES 



CHAPTER XV. 

COMPLETION OF THE CASTLE — DESCRIPTIONS OF ST. AU- 
GUSTINE A CENTURY AGO— ENGLISH OCCUPATION 
OF FLORIDA. 1755—1763—1783. 

Don Alonzo Fernandez de Herrera was appointed gover- 
nor of Florida in 1755, and completed the exterior works 
and finish of the fort. It is this governor who erected the 
tablet over its main entrance, with the Spanish coat of arms 
sculptured in alto relievo, with the following inscription be- 
neath : — 

REYNANDO EN ESPANA EL SEN^ 

DON FERNANDO SEXTO Y SIENDO 

GOV°^ Y CAP^ DE ES^ C° S^^ AUG^ DE 

LA FLORIDA Y SUS PROV^. EL MARISCAL 

DE CAMPO D^ ALONZO FERN^° HEREDA 

ASI CONCLUIO ESTE CASTILLO EL AN 

OD 1756 DIRI^'ENDO LAS OBRAS EL 

CAP. INGN^o DN PEDRO DE BROZAS 

Y GARAY. 

Don Ferdinand the Sixth, being king of Spain, and the 
Field Marshal, Don Alonzo Fernando Hereda, being Grov- 
ERNOR and Captain General of this place, St. Augustine, 
OP Florida, and its province. This fort was finished in 

THE YEAR 1756. ThE WORKS WERE DIRECTED BY THE CaPTAIN 

Engineer, Don Pedro de Brazos y Garay. 

I am not sure but that the boastful governor might with 
equal propriety and truth have put a similar inscription at 
the city gate, claiming the town also as a finished city. 

The first fort erected was called San Juan de Finos, and 
probably the same name attached to the present fort at the 



OF ST. AUGUSTINE, FLORIDA. 91 

commencement of its erection ; when it acquired the name 
of St. Mark, I have not discovered. The Apalachian Indi- 
ans were emploj'cd upon it for more than sixty years, and 
to their etibrts are probably due the evidences of immense 
labor in the construction of the ditch, the ramparts and' 
glacis, and the approaches ; while the huge mass of stone 
contained in its solid -walls, must have required the la- 
bor of hundreds of persons for many long years, in pro- 
curing and cutting the stone in the quarries on the island, 
transporting it to the w^ater, and across the bay, and fash- 
ioning ai;d "raising them to their places. Besides the Indi- 
ans employed, some labor was constantly bestowed by the 
garrison ; and, for a considerable period, convicts were 
brought hither from Mexico to carry on the public works. 
During the works of extension and repair effected by Mon- 
teano, previous to the siege by Oglethorpe, he employed 
upon it one hundred and forty of these Mexican convicts. 
The southwestern bastion is said to have been completed by 
Monteano. The bastions bore the names respectively of St. 
Paul, St. Peter, St. James, &c. 

The whole work remains now as it was in 1756, with the 
exception of the water battery, which was reconstructed by 
the government of the United States in 1842-3. The com- 
plement of its guns is one hundred, and its full garrison es- 
tablishment requires one thousand men. It is built upon 
the plan of Vaubanj and is considered by military men as a 
very creditable work; its strength and efficiency have been 
well tested in the old times ; for it has never been taken, al- 
though twice besieged, and several times attacked. Its 
frowning battlements and sepulchral vaults will long stand 
after we and those of our day shall be numbered with that 
long past, of which it is itself a memorial ; of its legends 
connected with the dark chambers and prison vaults, the 
chains, the instruments of torture, the skeletons walled in, 
its ckised and hidden recesses — of Coacouchee's escape, and 
many another tale, there is much to say ; but it is better said 
within its grim walls, where the eye and the imagination 
can go together, in weaving a web of mystery and awe over 
its sad associations, to the music of the grating _bolt, the 
echoing tread, and the clanking chain. 

Of the city itself, we have the following description in 
1754 :— 

"It is built on a little bay, at the foot of a hill shaded by 
trees, and forms an oblong square, divided into four streets, 
and has two full streets, which cut each other at right an- 



92 THE HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES 

gles. The houses are well built, and regular. Thej'^ have 
only one cliurch, which is called after the city. St. John's 
Fort, standing about a mile north of it, is a strong, irregu- 
lar fortitication, well mounted with cannon, and capable of 
making a long defense." 

I am inclined to think that the mile between the fort and 
the city, and the hill at the foot of which, he says, the city 
was built, existed only in the focus of the writer's specta- 
cles. 

The Provinces of Florida were ceded by treaty to Eng- 
land in the year 1763, and the Spanish inhabitants very gen- 
erally left the country, which had then been under Spanish 
rule for near two hundred years ; and certainly in no por- 
tion of this country had less progress been made. Beyond 
the walls occupied by its garrison, little had been attempted 
or accomplished in these two hundred years. This was in 
part, perhaps, attributable to the circumstances of the coun- 
try — the frequent hostility of the Indians, and the want of 
that mutual support given by neighborhoods, which in Flor- 
ida are less practicable than elsewhere ; but it was still more 
owing to the character of the Spanish inhabitants, who were 
more soldiers than civilians, and more townsmen than agri- 
culturists ; at all events, at the cession of Florida to Great 
Britain, the number of inhabitants was not over five thou- 
sand. 

Of the period of the English occupation of Florida, we 
have very full accounts. It was a primary object with the 
British government, to colonize and settle it; and induce- 
ments to emigrants were strongly put forth, in various pub- 
lications. The work of Roberts was the first of these, and 
was followed in a few years by those of Bartram, Stork, 
and Romans. The works of both Roberts and Stork, con- 
tain plans and minute descriptions of St. Augustine. The 
plan of the town in Stork, represents every building, lot, 
garden, and flower-bed in the place, and gives a very accu- 
rate view of its general appearance. 

The descriptions vary somewhat. Roberts, who published 
his work the year of the cession, 1763, shows in connection 
with his plan of the town, an Indian village on the point 
south of the city, at the pow^der-house, and another just 
north of the city. The one to the north has a church. A 
negro fort is shown about a mile to the northward. Ogle- 
thorpe's landing place is shown on Anastasia Island, and a~ 
small fort on the main land south of the city. The depth 
of water on the bar is marked as being at low water, eight 
feet. 



OF ST. AUGUSTINE, FLORIDA. 93 

Roberts describes tbe city as "running along the shore at 
the foot of a pleasant hill, adorned with trees ; its form is 
oblong, divided by four regular streets, crossing each other 
at right angles ; down by the sea side, about three-fourths 
of a mile south of the town, standeth the church, and a 
monastery of St. Augustine. The best built part of the 
town is on the north side, leading to the castle, which is 
called St. John's Fort. It is a square building of soft stone, 
fortified with whole bastions, having a rampart of twenty 
feet high, with a parapet nine feet high, and it is casemated. 
The town is fortified with bastions, and with cannon. On 
the north and south, without the walls of the city, are the 
Indian towns." 

The next plan we have, is in the work by Dr. Stork, the 
third edition of which was published in 1769. He gives a 
beautiful plan of the place. Shows the fort as it now exists, 
with its various outworks ; three churches are designated, 
one on the public square at its southwest corner ; another 
on St. George street, on the lot on the west side, south of 
Green lane, and a Dutch church near where the Roman 
Catholic cemetery now exists. From the size of the plan, 
it does not embrace the Indian village. The present United 
States Court-house was the governor's official residence, and 
is represented as having attached to it a beautiful garden. 
The Franciscan house or convent is shown where the bar- 
racks are now, but diiierent in the form of the buildings. 
With the exception of the disappearance of a part of one 
street then existing, there appears very little change from 
the present plan of the town and buildings. 

He describes the fort as being fi.nished " according to the 
modern taste of military architecture," and as making a 
very handsome appearance, and "that it might justl}' be 
deemed the prettiest fort in the king's dominion." He 
omits the pleasant hill from his description, and says "the 
town is situated near the glacis of the fort ; the streets are 
regularly laid out, and built narrow for the purposes of shade. 
It is above half a mile in length, regularly fortified with bas- 
tions, half-bastions, and a ditch; that it had also several rows 
of the Spanish bayonet along the ditch, which formed so close 
a chevaux de frize, with their pointed leaves, as to be im- 
penetrable ; the southern bastions were built of stone. In 
the middle of the town is a spacious square, called the 
parade, open towards the harbor ; at the bottom of the 
square is the governor's house, the apartments of which are 
spacious and suitable; suited to the climate, with high 



94 THE HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES 

windows, a balcony in front, and galleries on both sides ; to 
the back of tbe house is joined a tower, called in America 
a look-out, from which there is an extensive prospect to- 
wards the sea, as well as inland. There are two churches 
within the walls of the town, the parish church, a plain 
building, and another belonging to the convent of Francis- 
can Friars, which is converted into barracks for the garri- 
son. The houses are built of free-stone, commonly two 
stories high, two rooms upon a tloor, with large windows 
and balconies; before the entry of most of the houses, runs 
a portico of stone arches. The roofs are commonly flat. 
The Spaniards consulted convenience more than taste in 
their buildings. The number of houses within the town 
and lines, when the Spaniards left it, was about nine hun- 
dred ; many of them, especially in the suburbs, being built 
of wood, are now gone to decay. The inhabitants were of 
all colors, whites, negroes, mulattoes, Indians, &c. At the 
evacuation of St. Augustine, the population was tive thou- 
sand seven hundred, including the garrison of two thousand 
five hundred men. Half a mile from the town to the west, 
is a line with a broad ditch and bastions, running from the 
St. Sebastian creek to St. Marl'^s river. A mile further is 
another fortified line with some redoubts, forming a second 
communication between a stoccata fort upon St. Sebastian 
river, and Fort Moosa, upon St. Marks river. 

"Within the first line near the town, was a small settle- 
ment of Germans, who had a church of their own. Upon 
the St. Marks river, within the second line, was also an 
Indian town, with a church built of freestone ; wdiat is very 
remarkable, it is in good taste, though built by the Indians." 

The two lines of defense here spoken of, may still be 
traced. The nearest one is less than one-fourth of a mile 
from the citj' gate, and the other at the well-known place 
called the stockades, the stakes driven to form which, still 
distinctly mark the place ; and the ditch and embankment 
can be traced for a considerable distance through the grounds 
attached to my residence. 

A letter-writer, who dates at St. Augustine, May, 1774, 
says, " This town is now truly become a heap of ruins, a fit 
receptacle for the wretches of inhabitants." (Rather a 
dyspeptic description, in all probability.) 

A bridge was built across the Sebastian river by tlie 
English, " but the great depth of the water, joined to the 
instability of the bottom, did not suft'cr it to remain long, 
and a ferry is now established in its room ; the keeper of 



OF ST. AUGUSTINE, FLORIDA. 95 

the ferry has fifty pounds per annum allowed him, and the 
inhabitants pay nothing for crossing, except after dark." 

The English constructed large buildings for barracks, 
characterized by Romans " as such stupendous piles of 
buildings, which were large enough to contain fiv^e regi- 
ments, when it is a matter of great doubt whether there 
will ever be a necessity to keep one whole regiment here. 
The material for this great barracks was brought from ISTew 
York, and far inferior to those found on the spot ; yet the 
freight alone amounted to more than their value when 
landed. It makes us almost believe," says the elaborate 
Romans, " that all this show is in vain, or at most, that the 
English were so much in dread of musquitoes, that they 
thought a large army requisite to drive oli* these formidable 
foes. To be serious," says he, "this fort and barracks add 
not a little to the beauty of the prospect; but most men 
would think that the money spent on this useless parade, 
would have been better laid out on roads and fences through 
the province ; or, if it must be in forts, why not at Pensa- 
cola?" 

There is a manuscript work of John Gerard Williams de 
Brahm, existing in the library of Harvard University, which 
contains some particulars of interest, relative to Florida at 
the period of the English occupation. 

He states the number of inhabitants of East Florida, 
which in those days meant mostly St. Augustine, from 1663 
to 1771, as follows: householders, besides women, &c., two 
hundred and eighty-eight; imported by Mr. Turnbull from 
Minorca, &c., one thousand four hundred; negroes, upwards 
of nine hundred. Of these, white heads of families, one 
hundred and forty-four were married, which is just one- 
half; thirtj'-one are storekeepers and ti'aders ; three haber- 
dashers, fifteen innkeepers, forty-five artificers and mechan- 
ics, one hundred and ten planters, four hunters, six cow- 
keepers, eleven overseers, twelve draftsmen in employ of 
government, besides mathematicians; fifty-eight had left 
the province ; twenty-eight dead, of whom four were killed 
acting as constables, two hanged for pirating. Among the 
names of those then residing in East Florida are mentioned 
Sir Charles Burdett, William Drayton, Esq., planter, Chief 
Justice ; Rev. John Forbes, parson, Judge of Admiralty 
and Councillor; Rev. IST. Eraser, parson at Musquito ; Gov- 
ernor James Grant, Hon. John Moultrie, planter aud Lieu- 
tenant Governor ; William Stork, Esq., historian ; Andrew 
Turnbull, Esq., H. M. Counselor ; Bernard Romans, drafts- 
man, &c. ; William Bartram, planter; James Moultrie, Esq. 



96 THE HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES 

He says, The light house on Aiiastasia Island had been 
constructed and built of nikson-work by the Spaniards; and, 
in 1769, by order of General Haldimand, it was raised sixty 
feet higher in carpenter's work, had a cannon planted on 
the top, which is tired the very moment the flag is hoisted, 
for a signal to the town and pilots that a vessel is o&. The 
light house has two flag-staifs, one to the south and one to 
the north ; on either of which the flag is hoisted, viz., to the 
south if the vessel comes from thence, and the north if the 
vessel comes that way. 

" The town is situated in a healthy zone, is surrounded 
with salt water marshes, not at all prejudicial to health; 
their evaporations are swept away in the day time by the 
easterly winds, and in the night season by the westerly 
w^inds "trading back to the eastward. At the time wdien the 
Spaniards left the town, all the gardens were well stocked 
with fruit trees, viz., figs, guavas, plantain, pomegranates, 
lemons, limes, citrons, shadock, bergamot, China and 
Seville oranges, the latter full of fruit throughout the whole 
winter season ; and the pot-herbs, though suspended in 
their vegetation, were seldom destroyed by cold. The 
town is three-quarters of a mile in length, but not quite a 
quarter wid-e ; had four churches ornamently built with 
stone in the Spanish taste, of which one within and one 
without the town still exist. One is pulled down ; that is 
the German church, but the steeple is preserved as an orna- 
ment to the town ; and the other, viz., the convent church 
and convent in towni is taken in the body of the barracks. 
All houses are built of masonry; their entrances are shaded 
by piazzas, supported by Tuscan pillars or pilasters, against 
the south sun. The. houses have to the east windows pro- 
jecting sixteen or eighteen inches into the street, very wide, 
and proportionally high. On the west side, their windows 
are commonly very small, and no opening of any kind to 
the north, on which side they have double walls six or eight 
feet asunder, forming a kind of gallery, which answers for 
cellars and pantries. Before most of the entrances were 
arbors of vines, producing plenty and very good grapes. 
Xo house has any chimney for a fire-place; the Spaniards 
made use of stone urns, tilled them with coals left in their 
kitchens in the afternoon, and set them at sunset in their 
bed-rooms, to defend themselves against those winter sea- 
sons, which required such care. The governor's residence 
has both sides piazzas, viz., a double one to the south, and 
a single one to the north ; also a Belvidere and a grand por- 



OF ST. AUGUSTINE, FLORIDA. 97 

tico decorated with Doric pillars and entablatures. On the 
north end of the town is a casemated fort, with four bas- 
tions, a ravelin, counterscarp, and a glacis built with quar- 
ried shell-stones, and constructed according to the rudi- 
ments of Marechal de Vauban. This fort commands the 
road of the bay, the town, its environs, and both Tolomako 
stream and Mantanzas creek. The soil in the gardens and 
environs of the town is chiefly sandy and marshy. The 
Spaniards seem to have had a notion of manuring their land 
with shells one foot deep. 

" Among the three thousand who evacuated St. Augus- 
tine, the author is credibly informed, were many Spaniards 
near and above the age of one hundred years, (observe;) 
this nation, especially natives of St. Augustine, bore the 
reputation of great sobriety."* 

On the 3d of January, 1766, the themoraeter sunk to 26° 
with the wind from N. "W. " The ground was frozen an 
inch thick on the banks ; this was the fatal night that de- 
stroyed the lime, citron, and banana trees in St. Augustine, 
and many curious evergreens up the river that were twenty 
years old in a flourishing state."t In 1774 there was a snov.^ 
storm, which extended over most of the province. The an- 
cient inhabitants still (1836) speak of it as an extraordinary 
white rain. It was said to have done little damage.| 

In this connection, and as it is sometimes supposed that 
the climate is now colder than formerly, it may be stated 
that the thermometer went very low in 1799. East Florida 
suffered from a violent frost on the 6th April, 1828. In 
February, 1835, the thermometor sunk to 7° above zero, 
wind ftom N. W. ; and the St. Johns river was frozen 
several rods from the shore ; all kinds of fruit trees were 
killed to the ground, and the wild orange trees suffered as 
well as the cultivated. 

Dr. Nicholas TurnbuU, in the year 1767, associated with 
Sir William Duncan and other Englishmen of note, pro- 
jected a colony of European emigrants, to be settled at New 
Smyrna. He brought from the islands of Greece, Corsica, 
and Minorca, some fourteen hundred persons, agreeing to 
convey them free of expense, find them in clothing and pro- 
visions, and, at the end of three years, to give fift}^ acres of 
land to each head of a family, and twenty-five to each child. 



* De Brahm MS., p. 192. 

t Stork, p. 11. 

X Williams' Florida, p. 17. 



98 THE HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES 

After a long passage they arrived out, and formed the set- 
tlement. The principal article of cultivation produced by 
them was indigo, which commanded a high price, and was 
assisted by a bounty from the English government. After 
a few years, Turnbull, as is alleged, either from avarice or 
natural cruelty, assumed a control the most absolute over 
these colonists, and practiced cruelties the most painful upon 
them. 

An insurrection took place in 1769 among them, in con- 
sequence of severe punishments, which was speedily re- 
pressed, and the leaders of it brought to trial before the 
English court at St. Augustine; five of the number were 
convicted and sentenced to death. Gov. Grant pardoned 
two of the five, and a third was released upon the condition 
of his becoming the executioner of the other two. Nine 
years after the commencement of their settlement, their 
number had become reduced from 1,400 to 600. In 1776, 
proceedings were instituted on their behalf by Mr. Yonge, 
the attorney-general of the province, which resulted in their 
being exonerated from their contract with Turnbull ; lands 
were thereupon assigned them in the northren part of the 
cit}'^, which was principally built up by them ; and their de- 
scendants, at the present day, form the larger portion of the 
population of that place. 

Governor Grant was the first English governor, and was 
a gentleman of much energ}'^ ; and during his term of ofiice 
he projected many great and permanent improvements in 
the province. The public roads, known astheking's roads, 
from St. Augustine to New Smyrna, and from St. Augus- 
tine to Jacksonville, and thence to Coleraine, were then 
constructed, and remain a lasting monument of his wisdom 
and desire of improvement. 

Gov. Tonyn succeeded Gov. Grant; and a legislative 
council was authorized to assemble, and the pretense and 
forms of a constitutional government were gone through 
with. 

In August, 1775, a British vessel called the Betsey, Capt. 
Lofthouse, from London, with 111 barrels of powder, was 
captured o& the bar of St. Augustine, by an American pri- 
vateer from Charleston, very much to the disgust and an- 
noyance of the British authorities. 

At this period, St. Augustine assumed much importance 
as a depot and point d'appui for the British forces in their 
operations against the Southern States; and very consider- 
abe forces were at times assembled. 



OF ST. AUGUSTINE, FLORIDA. 99 

In the excess of the zeal and loyalty of the garrison and 
inhabitants of St. Augustine, upon the receipt of the news 
of the American Declaration of Independence, the effigies 
of John Hancock and Samuel Adams were burned upon 
the public square, where the monument now stands. 

The expedition of Gen. Prevost against Savannah was or- 
ganized and embarked from St. Augustine, in 1779. 

Sixty of the most distinguished citizens of Carolina were 
seized by the British in 1780, and transported to St. Augus- 
tine as prisoners of war and hostages, among whom were 
Arthur Middleton, Edward Rutledge, Gen. Gadsden, and 
Mr. Calhoun ; all were put upon parole except Gen. Gads- 
den and Mr. Calhoun, who refused the indulgence, and were 
committed to the fort, where they remained many months 
close prisoners. Gen. Rutherford and Col. Isaacs, of JSTorth 
Carolina, were also transported hither, and committed to 
the fort. 

An expedition was fitted out from St. Augustine in 1783, 
to act against New Providence, under Col. Devereux; and, 
with very slender means that able officer succeeded in cap- 
turing and reducing the Bahamas, which have ever since 
remained under English domination. 

The expense of supporting the government of East 
Florida during the English occupation, was very consider- 
able, amounting to the sum of X122,000. The exports of 
Florida, in 1778, amounted to £48,000 ; and in 1772, the 
province exported 40,000 lbs. indigo ; and in 1782, 20,000 
barrels of turpentine. 



UiCCi 



100 THE HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES 



CHAPTER XVI. 

RE-CESSION OF FLOEIDA TO SPAIN— ERECTION OF THE 
PARISH CHURCH— CHANGE OF FLAGS. 1783—1821. 

In June, 1784, in fulfillment of the treaty between 
England and Spain, Florida, after twenty years of British 
occupation, was re-ceded to the Spanish Crown, and taken 
possession of by Governor Zespedez. 

The English residents, in general, left* the country, and 
went either to the"^Bahanias, Jamaica, or the United States. 
Those who went to the British islands were almost ruined ; 
but those who settled in the States were more successful. 

In April, 1793, the present Roman Catholic church was 
commenced, the previous church having been in another 
portion of the city.f It was constructed under the direction 
of Don Mariana de la Rocque and Don P. Berrio, govern- 
ment engineer-officers. The co^tof the church was $16,650, 
of which about $6,000 was received from the proceeds of 
the materials and ornaments of the old churches, about 
$1,000 from the contributions of the inhabitants, and the 
remaining $10,000 furnished by the government. One ot 
its four bells has the following inscription, showing it to be 
probably the oldest bell in this country, being now 18.5 
years old. 



1^ 



Sancte Joseph. 

Ora Pro Nobis. 

D 1682. 

Don Enrique WViite was for many years governor of Flor- 
ida, and died in the city of St. Augustine. He is spoken 
of by those who knew him, in high terms, for his integrity 

* Among the families remaining were the Fatios, Flemings, and a few 
others. 

f The old parish church was on St. George street, on west side of the street. 



OF ST. AUGUSTINE, FLORIDA. 101 

and openness of character; and many amusing anecdotes 
are related connected with his eccentricities. 

In 1812, the American government, being apprehensive 
that Great Britain designed obtaining possession of Florida, 
sent its troops into the province, overrunning and destroy- 
ing the whole country. The manner and the pretenses 
under which this was done, reflect but little credit on the 
United States government ; and the transparent sham of 
taking possession of the country by the patriots, supported 
by United States troops, was as undignified as it was futile. 
It is for the damages occasioned by this invasion, that the 
"Florida claims " for "losses" of its citizens have been 
presented to the government of the United States. The 
principal of the damages sustained, that is to say, the actual 
value of the property then destroyed, has been allowed and 
paid; but the interest, or damages for the detention, has 
been withheld upon the ground that the government does 
not pay interest. The treaty between the United States 
and Spain in reference to the cession of Florida to the 
United States, requires the United States to make satisfac- 
tion for such claims ; and the payment of the bare amount 
of actual loss, after a detention of thirty years, is considered 
by the claimants an inadequate satisfaction of a just claim. 

In the spring of 1818, General Jackson made his cele- 
brated incursion into Florida, and by a series of energetic 
movements followed the Seminoles and Creeks to their fast- 
nesses, and forever crushed the power of those formidable 
tribes for offensive operations. 

In the latter part of 1817, a revolutionary party took pos- 
session of Amelia Island, and raised a soi disant fairiot flag 
at Fernaiidina, supported mainly in the enterprise by adven- 
turers from the United States ; M'Gregor was assisted by 
officers of the United States army. An expedition was 
sent from St. Augustine by the Spanish governor to eject 
the invaders, w^hich failed. One Aury, an English adven- 
turer, for a time held command there; and also a Mr. Hub- 
bard, formerly sheriff of New York, who was the civil gov- 
ernor, and died there. The United States troops eventually 
interfered ; but negotiations for the cession put a stop to 
further hostilities. 

The king of Spain, finding his possessions in Florida 
utterly worthless to his crown, and only an expense to sus- 
tain the garrisons, while the repeated attempts to disturb 
its political relations prevented any beneficial progress 
towards its settlement, gladly agreed, in 1819, to a transfer 
of Florida to the United States for five millions of dollars. 



102 THE HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES 

An Eni^lish gentleman who visited St. Augustineinl817, 
gives his impressions of the place as follows : "Emerging 
from the solitudes and shades of the pine forests, we espied 
the distant yet distinct lights of the watch towers of the 
fortress of St. Augustine, delightful beacons to my weary 
pilgrimage. The clock Avas striking ten as I reached the 
foot of the drawbridge; the sentinels were passing the aier/o, 
as I demanded entrance; having answered the preliminary 
questions, the draw-bridge was slowly lowered. The officer 
of the guard, having received my name and wishes, sent a 
communication to the governor, who issued orders for my 
immediate admission. On opening the gate, the guard w^as 
ready to receive me; and a file of men, with their officer, 
escorted me to his Excellency, who expressed his satisfac- 
tion at my revisit to Florida. I soon retired to the luxury 
of repose, and the following morning was greeted as an old 
acquaintance by the members of this little community. 

"I had arrived at a season of general relaxation, on the 
eve of the carnival, which is celebrated with much gayety 
in all Catholic countries. Masks, dominoes, harlequins, 
Punchinellos, and a great variety of grotesqe disguises, on 
horseback, in cars, gigs, and on foot, paraded the streets 
with guitars, violins, and other instruments ; and in the 
evenings, the houses were open to receive masks, and balls 
were given in every direction. I was told that in their 
better days, when their pay was regularly remitted from the 
Havana, these amusements were admirably conducted, and 
the rich dresses exhibited on these occasions, were not 
eclipsed by their more fashionable friends in Cuba; but 
poverty had lessoned their spirit for enjoyment, as well as 
the means for procuring it ; enough, however, remained to 
amuse an idle spectator, and I entered with alacrity into 
their diversions. 

"About thirty of the hunting warriors of the Seminoles, 
with their squaws, had arrived, for the purpose of selling 
the produce of the chase, consisting of bear, deer, tiger, and 
other skins, bears' grease, and other trifling articles. This 
savage race, once the lords of the ascendant, are the most 
formidable border enemies of the United States. This 
party had arrived, after a range of six months, for the pur- 
pose of sale and barter. After trafficking for their com- 
modities, they were seen at various parts of the town, 
assembled in small groups, seated upon their haunches, like 
monkeys, passing round their bottles of aque dente (the rum 
of Cuba), their repeated draughts upon which soon ex- 



OF ST. AUGUSTINE, FLORIDA. 103 

hausted their contents ; they then slept oft' the effects of in- 
toxication, under the walls, exposed to the influence of the 
sun. Their appearance was extremely wretched ; their 
skins of a dark, dirty, chocolate color, with long, straight, 
hlack hair, over which they had spread a quantity of bears' 
grease. In their ears, and the cartilages of the nose, were in- 
serted rings of silver and brass, with pendants of various 
shapes ; their features prominent and harsh, and their eyes 
had a wild and ferocious expression. 

" A torn blanket, or an ill-fashioned dirty linen jacket, is 
the general costume of these Indians ; a triangular piece of 
cloth passes around the loins ; the women vary in their 
apparel by merely wearing short petticoats, the original 
colors of which were not distinguishable from the various 
incrustations of dirt. Some of the young squaws were tol- 
erably agreeable, and if well washed and dressed would not 
have been uninteresting ; but the elder squaws wore the air 
of misery and debasement. 

" The garrison is composed of a detachment from the 
Royal regiment of Cuba, with some hlack troops ; who 
together form a respectable force. The fort and bastions 
are built of the same material as the houses of the town, 
coqidna. This marine substance is superior to stone, not 
being liable to splinter from the effects of bombardment; 
it receives and imbeds the shot, which adds rather than de- 
tracts from its strength and security. 

"The houses and the rear of the town are intersected and 
covered with orange groves ; their golden fruit and deep 
green foliage, not only render the air agreeable, but 
beautify the appearance of this interesting little town, in 
the centre of which (the square) rises a large structure dedi- 
cated to the Catholic religion. At the upper end are the 
remains of a very considerable house, the former residence 
of the governor of this settlement; but now (1817), in a 
state of dilapidation and decay, from age and inattention. 

"At the southern extremity of the town stands a large 
building, formerly a monastery of Carthusian Friars, but 
now occupied as a barrack for the troops of the garrison. 
At a little distance are four stacks of chimnies, the sole re- 
mains of a beautiful range of barracks, built during the oc- 
cupancy of the British, from 1763 to 1783 ; for three years 
the 29th regiment was stationed there, and in that time they 
did not lose a single man. The proverbial salubrity of the 
climate, has obtained for St. Augustine the designation of 
the Montpelier of North America; indeed, such is the gene- 
ral character of the Province of East Florida. 



104 THE HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES 

" The governor (Copinger), is about forty-five years of 
age, of active and vigorous mind, anxious to promote by 
every means in his power the prosperity of the province 
confided to his command ; his urbanity and other amiable 
qualities render him accessible to the meanest individual, 
and justice is sure to follow an appeal to his decision. His 
military talents are well known, and appreciated by his 
sovereign ; and he now holds, in addition to the govern- 
ment of East Florida, the rank of Colonel in the Royal 
Regiment of Cuba. 

" The clergy consist of the -padre (priest of the parish), 
Father Cosby, a native of Wexford, in Ireland; a Francis- 
can friar, the chaplain to the garrison, and an inferior or 
cure. The social qualities of the padre, and the general 
tolerance of his feelings, render him an acceptable visitor 
to all his flock. The judge, treasurer, collector, and 
notary, are the principal otRcers of the establishment, be- 
sides a number of those devoted solely to the military occu- 
pations of the garrison. The whole of this society is 
extremely courteous to strangers ; they forrft one family, 
and those little jealousies and animosities, so disgraceful to 
our small English communities, do not sully their meetings 
of friendly chit-chat, called as in Spain, turtulias. The 
women are deservedly celebrated for their charms ; their 
lovely black eyes have a vast deal of expression ; their com- 
plexions a clear brunette ; much attention is paid to the ar- 
rangement of their hair ; at mass they are always well 
dressed in black silk basquinas (petticoats), with the little 
mantilla (black lace veil) over their heads ; the men in their 
military costumes ; good order and temperance are their 
characteristic virtues ; but the vice of gambling too often 
profanes their social haunts, from wdiich even the fair sex 
are not excluded. Two days following our arrival, a ball 
was given by some of the inhabitants, to which I was 
invited. The elder couples opened it with minuets, suc- 
ceeded by the younger couples displaying their handsome 
light figures in Spanish dances."* 

The old inhabitants still speak in terms of fond regret of 
the place when embowered in its orange groves, and the 
pleasantness of its old customs and usages. Dancing 
formed one of their most common amusements, as it does 
now. The poscy dance, now" become obsolete, was then of 
almost dail}' occurrence, and w^as introduced in the follow- 
ing manner: The females of the family erect in a room of 

* Voyage to Spanish Main. London, 1819. Tage 116, et seg. 



OF ST. AUGUSTINE, FLORIDA. 105 

their house a neat little arbor, dressed with pots and gar- 
lands of flowers, and lit up brightly with candles. This is 
understood by the gentleman as an invitation to drop in and 
admire the beauty of their decorations. In the mean time, 
the lady who has prepared it, selects a partner from among 
her visitors, and in token of her preference, honors him 
with a bouquet of flowers. The gentleman who receives 
the bouquet becomes then, for the nonce, king of the ball, 
and leads out the fair donor as queen of the dance ; the 
others take partners, and the ball is thus inaugurated, and 
may continue several successive evenings. Should the 
lady's choice fall upon an unwilling swain, which seldom 
liappened, he could be excused by assuming the expenses 
of the entertainment. These assemblies were always in- 
formal, and frequented by all classes, all meeting on a level; 
but were conducted with the utmost politeness and decorum, 
for which the Spanish character is so distinguished. 

The carnival amusements are still kept up to some extent, 
but with little of the taste and wit which formerly charac- 
terized them, and without which they degenerate into mere 
buffoonery. 

The graceful Spanish dance, so well suited in its slow and 
regular movements to the inhabitants of a warm climate, 
has always retained the preference with the natives of the 
place, who dance it with that native grace and elegance of 
movement which seems easy and natural for every one, but 
is seldom equaled by the Anglo-Saxon. 



106 THE HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES 



CHAPTER XVII. 

TRANSFER OF FLORIDA TO THE UNITED STATES— AMERICAN 
OCCUPATION— ANCIENT BUILDINGS, Etc. 

On the lOtli day of July, iu the year 1821, the standard 
of Spain, which had been raised two hundred and fifty-six 
years before over St. Augustine, was finally lowered forever 
from the walls over which it had so long fluttered, and the 
stars and stripes of the youngest of nations rose where, 
sooner or later, the hand of destiny would assuredly have 
placed them. 

It was intended that the change of flags should have 
taken place on the 4th of July ; owing to a detention, this 
this was frustrated ; but the inhabitants celebrated the 4th 
with a handsome public ball at the governor's house. 

The Spanish garrison, and officers connected with it, re- 
turned to Cuba, and some of the Spanish families ; but the 
larger portion of the inhabitants remained. A considera- 
ble influx of inhabitants from the adjoining States took 
place, and the town speedily assumed a somewhat American 
character. The proportion of American population since 
the change of flags, has been about one-third. Most of the 
native inhabitants converse with equal fluency in either 
language. 

In the year 1823, the legislative council of Florida held 
its second session in the government house at St. Augus- 
tine. Governor W. P. Duval was the first governor after 
the organization of the territory. The Ralph Ringwood 
Sketches of Irving ^have given a wide celebrity to the char- 
acter of our worthy and original first governor, now re- 
cently deceased. 

During the month of February, 1835, East Florida 
was visited by a frost much more severe than any before 
experienced. A severe northwest wind blew ten days in 
succession, but more violently for about three days. During 
this period, the mercury sunk to seven degrees above zero. 
The St. Johns river was frozen several rods from the shore. 
All kinds of fruit trees were killed to the ground ; many of 
them never started as-ain, even from the roots. The wild 



OF ST. AUGUSTINE, FLORIDA. 107 

groves suffered equally with those cultivated. The orange 
had become the staple of Florida commerce ; several mil- 
lions were exported from the St. Johns and St. Augustine 
during the two previous years. Numerous groves had just 
been planted out, and extensive nurseries could hardly sup- 
ply the demand for young trees. Some of the groves had, 
during the previous autumn, brought to their owners, one, 
two, and three thousand dollars ; and the increasing de- 
mand for this fruit, opened in prospect mines of wealth to 
the inhabitants. 

" Then came a frost, a withering frost." 

Some of the orange groves in East Florida were estimated 
at from five to ten thousand dollars, and even more. They 
were at once rendered valueless. The larger part of the 
population at St. Augustine had been accustomed to de- 
pend on the produce of their little groves of eight or ten 
trees, to purchase their coffee, sugar, and other necessaries 
from the stores ; they were left without resource. 

"The town of St. Augustine, that heretofore appeared 
like a rustic village, their white houses peeping from among 
the clustered boughs and golden fruit of their favorite tree, 
beneath whose shade the foreign invalid cooled his fevered 
limbs, and imbibed health from the fragrant air, — how was 
she fallen ! Dry, unsightly poles, with ragged bark, stick 
up around her dwellings ; and where the mocking-bird once 
delighted to build her nest, and tune her lovely songs, owls 
hoot at night, and sterile winds whistle through the leafless 
branches. IlTever was a place rendered more desolate."* 

The groves were at once replanted, and soon bid fair to 
yield most abundantly ; when, in 1842, an insect was intro- 
duced into the country, called the orange coccus, which 
spread over the whole country with wonderful rapidity, and 
almost totally destroyed every tree it fastened upon. Of 
late, the ravages of this insect seem less destructive, and 
the groves have begun to resume their bearing ; these add 
to the beauty of the residences at St. Augustine, with their 
glossy, deep-green leaves, and golden fruit ; and hopes of 
an entire restoration are now confidently entertained. 

In December, 1835, the war with the Seminole Indians 
broke out ; and for some years St. Augustine was full of 
the pomp and circumstance of war. It was dangerous to 
venture beyond the gates ; and many sad scenes of Indian 
massacre took place in the neighborhood of the city. Dur- 

* "Williams' Florida, pp. 18, et seq. 



108 THE HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES 

iiig this period, great apparent prosperity prevailed ; prop- 
erty was valuable, rents were high; speculators projected 
one city on the north of the town, Jind another on the west ; 
a canal to the St. Johns, and also a railroad to Picolata ; 
and great hopes of future prosperity were entertained. 
With the cessation of the war, the importance of St. Au- 
gustine diminished ; younger communities took the lead of 
it, aided by superior advantages of location, and greater 
enterprise, and St. Augustine has subsided into the pleasant, 
quiet, dolce far nienie of to-day, living upon its old memo- 
ries, contented, peaceful, and agreeable, and likely to re- 
main without much change for the future. 

Of the public buildings, it may be remarked that the 
extensive British barracks were destroyed by tire in 1792 ; 
and that the Franciscan Convent was occupied as it had 
been before, as barracks for the troops not in garrison in 
the fort. The appearance of these buildings has been much 
changed by the extensive repairs and alterations made by 
the United States government. It had formerly a large 
circular look-out upon the top, from which a beautiful view 
of the surrounding country was obtained. Its walls are 
probably the oldest foundations in the city. 

The present United States Court-house, now occupied by 
many public offices, was the residence of the Spanish gov- 
ernors. It has been rebuilt by the United States ; and its 
former quaint and interesting appearance has been lost, in 
removing its look-out tower, and balconies, and the hand- 
some gateway, mentioned by De Brahm, which is said to 
have been a fine specimen of Doric architecture.* 

Trinity Episcopal Church was commenced in 1827, and 
consecrated in 1833, by Bishop Bowen, of South Carolina. 
The Presbyterian Church was built about 1830, and the 
Methodist chapel about 1846. 

The venerable-looking building on the bay, at the corner 
of Green lane and Bay street, is considered the oldest build- 
ing in the place, and has evidently been a fine building in 
its day. It was the residence of the attorney-general, in 
English times. 

The monument on the public square was erected in 1812- 
13, upon the information of the adoption of the Spanish 
constitution, as a memorial of that event, in pursuance of 
a royal order to that effect, directed to the public authori- 
ties of all the provincial towns. Geronimo Alvarez was 

*It is said to have been taken down by the contractor, to form the 
foundation of his liitchen. 



OF ST. AUGUSTINE, FLORIDA. 109 

the Alcalde iinder whose direction it was erected. The 
plan of it was made bj Sr. Hernandez, the father of the 
late General Hernandez A short time after it was put np, 
the Spanish constitution having had a downfall, orders 
were issued by the government that all the monuments 
erected to the constitution throughout its dominions, should 
l)e demolished. The citizens of St. Augustine were un- 
willing to see their monument torn down ; and with the 
passive acquiescence of the governor, the marble tablets 
inscribed Plaza de la Constitucion being removed, the 
monument itself was allowed to stand; and thus it remains 
to this day, the only monument in existence to commemo- 
rate the farce of the constitution of 1812. In 1818, the 
tablets were restored without objection. 
,. The bridge and causeway are the work of the govern- 
ment of the United States. The present sea-wall was built 
between 1835 and 1842, by the United States, at an expense 
of one hundred thousand dollars. 



110 THE HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES 



CHAPTER XVIII. 

PRESENT APPEARANCE OF ST. AUGUSTINE, AS GIVEN BY 

THE AUTHOR OF THANATOPSIS— ITS CLIMATE AND 

SALUBRITY. 

St. Augustine has now attained, for this side of the Atlan- 
tic, a period of most respectable antiquity. In a country like 
America, where States are ushered into existence in the full 
development of maturity, where large cities rise like magic 
from the rude forest, where the "oldest inhabitant" recol- 
lects the cutting down of the lofty elms which shadowed the 
wigwam of the red man, perchance on some spot now in the 
heart of a great city; an antiquity of three centuries would 
be esteemed as almost reaching back (compared with mod- 
ern growth) to the days of the Pharaohs. 

The larger number of early settlements were unsuitably 
located, and were forced to be abandoned on account of 
their unhealthiness; but the Spanish settlement at St. Au- 
gustine has remained for near three hundred years where it 
was originally planted ; and the health of its inhabitants 
has, for this long period, given it a deserved reputation for 
salubrity and exemption from disease, attributable to lo- 
cality or extraneous influences or causes. 

The great age attained by its inhabitants was remarked 
l)y De Brahm ; the number and healthfulness of the chil- 
dren that throng its streets, attract now, as they did then, 
the attention of strangers. This salubrity is easily accounted 
for, by the almost insular position of the city, upon a narrow 
neck of land nearly surrounded by salt water; the main 
shore, a high and healthy pine forest and sandy plains, so 
near the ocean as to be fanned by its constant breezes, and 
within the sound of its echoing waves; a situation combin- 
ing more local advantages for salubrity could hardly be im- 
agined. While it will never probably increase to any great 
extent in population, it will hardly be likely to decrease. Its 
health, easy means of support, unambitious class of inhabi- 
tants, with their strong attachments and family and local 
ties, will contribute to maintain St. Augustine as the time- 
honored ancient city, with its permanent population, and 
its visitors for health, for centuries perhaps yet to come. 



OF ST. AUGUSTINE, FLORIDA. Ill 

I cannot perhaps better conclude these historic notices 
than by giving the impressions of the author of Thanatop- 
sis,* one whose poetic fame will endure as long as American 
literature exists. Writing from St. Augustine in April, 
1843, he says : 

" At length we emerged upon a shrubby plain, and finally 
came in sight of this oldest city of the United States, seated 
among its trees on a sandy swell of land, where it has stood 
for three hundred years. I was struck with its ancient and 
homely aspect, even at a distance, and could not help liken- 
ing it to pictures which I had seen of Dutch towns, though 
it wanted a wind-mill or two to make the resemblance per- 
fect. We drove into a green square, in the midst of which 
was a monument erected to commemorate the Spanish 
constitution of 1812, and thence through the narrow streets 
of the city to our hotel. 

"• I have called the streets narrow. In few places are they 
wide enough to allow two carriages to pass abreast. I was 
told that they were not originally intended for carriages ; and 
that in the time when the town belonged to Spain, many of 
them were floored with an artificial stone, composed of 
shells and mortar, which in this climate takes and keeps the 
hardness of rock; and that no other vehicle than a hand- 
barrow was allowed to pass over them. In some places you 
see remnants of this ancient pavement; but for the most 
part it has been ground into dust under the wheels of the 
carts and carriages introduced by the new inhabitants. The 
old houses, built of a kind of stone which is seemingly a 
pure concretion of small shells, overhang the streets with 
their wooden balconies ; and the gardens between the 
houses are fenced on the side of the street with high walls 
of stone. Peeping over these walls you see branches of the 
pomegranate, and of the orange-tree now fragrant with 
flowers, and rising yet higher, the leaning boughs of the fig 
with its broad luxuriant leaves. Occasionally you pass the 
ruins of houses — walls of stone with arches and stair-cases 
of the same material, which once belonged to stately dwell- 
ings. You meet in the streets with men of swarthy com- 
plexions and foreign physiognomy, and you hear them 
speaking to each other in a strange language. You are told 
that these are the remains of those who inhabited the 
country under the Spanish dominion, and that the dialect 
you have heard is that of the island of Minorca. 

* Bryant. 



112 THE HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES 

"'Twelve years ago,' said an acquaintauce of mine, 
'when I first visited St. Augustine, it was a fine old Span- 
ish town. A large proportion of the houses which you now 
see roofed like barns, where then flat-roofed; they were all 
of shell rock, and these modern wooden buildings were 
then not erected. That old fort which they are now repair- 
ing, to fit it for receiving a garrison, was a sort of ruin, for 
the outworks had partly fallen, and it stood unoccupied by 
the military, a venerable monument of the Spanish domin- 
ion. But the orange-groves were the wealth and ornament 
of St. Augustine, and their produce maintained the inhabi- 
tants in comfort. Orange-trees of the size and height of 
the pear-tree, often rising higher than tne roofs of the 
houses, embowered the town in perpetual verdure. They 
stood so close in the groves that they excluded the sun ; and 
the atmosphere was at all times aromatic with their leaves 
and fruit, and in spring the fragrance of the flowers was al- 
most oppressive.' 

" The old fort of St. Mark, now called Fort Marion— a 
foolish change of name — is a noble work, frowning over the 
Mantanzas, which flows between St. Augustine and the 
island of Anastasia ; and it is worth making a long journey 
to see. No record remains of its original construction ; but 
it is supposed to have been erected about a hu-'dred and 
fifty years since,* and the shell rock of which it is built is 
dark with time. We saw where it had been struck with 
cannon balls, which, instead of splitting the rock, became 
imbedded and clogged among the loosened fragments of 
shell. This rock is therefore one of the best materials for 
fortification in the world. We were taken into the ancient 
prisons of the fort-dungeons, one of which was dimly 
lighted by a grated window, and another entirely without 
light; and by the flame of a torch we were shown the half 
obliterated inscriptions scrawled on the walls long ago by 
prisoners. But in another corner of thefort, we were taken 
to look at the secret cells, which were discovered a few 
years since in consequence of the sinking of the earth over 
a narrow apartment between them. These cells are deep 
under ground, vaulted over-head, and without windows. 
In one of them a wooden machine was found, which some 
supposed might have been a rack, and in the other a quan- 
tity of human bones. The doors of these cells had been 
walled up and concealed with stucco, before the fort passed 
into the hands of the Americans. 

* It is much more ancient. 



OF ST. AUGUSTINE, FLORIDA. 113 

" You cannot be in St. Augustine a day without hearing 
some of its inhabitants speak of its agreeable climate. 
During the sixteen days of my residence here, the weather 
has certainly been as delightful as 1 could imagine. We 
have the temperature of early June as June is known in 
iSTew York. The mornings are sometimes a little sultry ; 
but after two or three hours a fresh breeze comes in from 
the sea sweeping through the broad piazzas, and breathing 
in at the windows. At this season it comes laden with the 
fragrance of the flowers of the Pride of India, and sometimes of 
the orange tree, and sometimes brings the scent of roses, now 
in bloom. The nights are gratefully cool; and I have been told 
by a person who has lived here many years, that there are very 
few nights in summer when you can sleep without a blanket. 

" An acquaintance of mine, an invalid, who has tried 
various climates, and has kept up a kind of running tight 
with death for many j^ears, retreating from country to 
country as he pursued, declares to me that the winter cli- 
mate of St. Augustine is to be preferred to that of any part 
of Europe, even that of Sicily, and that it is better than 
the climate of the West Indies. He finds it genial and 
equable, at the same time that it is not enfeebling. The 
summer hr ts are prevented from being intense by the sea- 
breeze, of which I have spoken. I have looked over the 
work of Dr. Forry on the climate of the United States, and 
have been surprised to see the uniformity of climate which 
he ascribes to Key West. As appears by the observations 
he has collected, the seasons at that place glide into each 
other by the softest gradations ; and the heat never, even in 
midsummer, reaches that extreme which is felt in the 
higher latitudes of the American continent. The climate of 
Florida is, in fact, an insular climate: the Atlantic on the 
east, and the Gulf of Mexico on the west, temper the airs 
that blow over it, making them cooler in summer and 
warmer in winter. I do not wonder, therefore, that it is so 
much the resort of invalids ; it would be more so if the 
softness of its atmosphere, and the beauty and serenity of 
its seasons were generally known. Nor should it be sup- 
posed that accommodations for persons in delicate health are 
wanting; they are, in fact, becoming better with every year, 
as the demand for them increases. Among the acquaint- 
ances whom I have made here, I remember many who 
having come hither for the benefit of their health, are 
detained for life by the amenity of the climate. 'It seems 
to me,' said an intelligent srentleman of this class, the other 
8 



114 THE HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES 

day, 'as if I could, not exist out of Florida. When I g;o to 
the north, I feel most sensibly the severe extremes of the 
weather ; the climate of Charleston itself appears harsh to 
me.' 

" The negroes of St. Augustine are a good-looking speci- 
men of the race, and have the appearance of being very 
well treated. You rarely see a negro in ragged clothing; 
and the colored children, though slaves, are often dressed 
with great neatness. In the colored people whom I saw in 
the Catholic church, I remarked a more agreeable, open, 
and gentle physiogomy than I have been accustomed to see 
in that class. 

" Some old customs which the Minorcans brought with 
them from their native country, are still kept up. On the 
evening before Easter Sunday, about eleven o'clock, I heard 
the sound of a serenade in the streets. Going out, I found 
a party of young men with instruments of music, grouped 
jibout the window of one of the dwellings, singing a hymn 
in honor of the Virgin,* in the Mahonese dialect. They be- 
gan, as I was told, with tapping on the shutter. An an- 
swering knock within had told them that their visit was 
welcome, and they immediately began the serenade. If no 
reply had been heard, they would have passed on to another 
dwelling. I give the hymn as it was kindly taken down 
for me in writing, by a native of St Augustine, I presume 
this is the lirst time"^that it has been pufin print; but I fear 
the copy has several corruptions, occasioned by the unskill- 
fulness of the copyist. The letter e, which I have put 
in italics, represents the guttural French e, or, perhaps, 
more nearly the sound of the u in the word but. The .s7/. 
of our language is represented by sc followed by an i or an 
e; the 9^, both hard and soft, has the same sound as in our 
language. 

" ' Disciar^m lu dol 
Cantarem aub' alagria 
y n'arem a da 
Las pascuas a Maria 

O Maria ! 
^' ' SajEt Grabiel, 
Qui portaba la ambasciado 
iUes nostro rey del eel, 
Estaran vos prenada 
Ya oniitiada 
Tu o vais aqui surventu 
Fia del Dieu contenta 
Para fe lo que el vol 

Disciureni lu dol, &c. 

* This song is usually called the Fromajardis. 



OF ST. AUGUSTINE, FLORIDA. 115 

" ' Y a milla nit 
Piirigiiero vos regina 
A un Dieu infinit, 
Dintra una establina. 

Y a milla dia, 

Que los angles von cantant 

Pau y abondant 

De la gloria de Dieu sol 

Disciarnn lu dol, &c. 

" ' Ya Libalam, 

Alia la terra santa 

!Nus nat Jesus 

Aub' alagria tanta 

Infant petit 

Que tot lu mon salvaria 

Y ningu y bastaria 
Nu mes un Dieu tot sul 

Disciarmi lu dol, &c. 

" ' Cuant de Orion lus 
Tres revs la stralla veran 
Dieu omnipotent 
Adora lo vingaran 
Un present interan 
De mil gncens y or 
A lu beneit seno 
Que conesce cual se vol 

Disciarem lu dol, &c. 

" ' Tot fu gayant 
Para eumple la prumas 

Y lu Esperit sant 

De un angel fau gramas 
Gran foe ences, 
Que crama lu curagia 
Dieu nos da lenguagia 
Para fe lo que Dieu vol 

Disciarem lu dol, &c. 

" ' Cuant trespasa 

De quest mon nostra Senora 

Al eel s' empugia 

Sun fil la matescia ora 

O ! Emperadora 

Que del eel san eligida 

Lu rosa florida 

Me resplenden que un sol 

Disciar^m lu dol, &c. 

" ' Y el tercer giorn 
Que Jesus resunta 
Dieu y Aboroma 
Que la mort triumfa 
De alii se balla 
Para perldra Lucife 
An tot a sen penda 
Que de nostro ser el sol 

Disciarem lu dol, &c.' 



116 THE HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES 

" After this hymn, the following stanzas, soliciting the 
customary gift of cakes or eggs, are sung : — 

" ' Ce set que vam cantaiit, 
Kegina celestial ! 
Damos pan y alagria 

Y bonas festas tingan 

Y vos da sus bonas festas 
Danos dines de sus nous 
Sempre tarem lus neans Uestas 
Para recibi un grapat de nes, 

Y el giorn de pascua florida 
Alagramos y giuntament 

As qui es mort par dar nos vida 

Y via glorosiamente. 

, A questa casa esta enipedrada 
Bien halla que la cmpedro ; 
iSan amo de aquosta casa 
Baldria duna un do 
Formagiado o empanada 
Cucutta a flao ; 
Cual se val casa rue grada, 
Sol que no rue digas que no.' 

" The shutters are then opened hy the people within, and 
a supply of cheese, cakes or other pastry, or eggs, is 
dropped into a bag carried by one of the party; who ac- 
knowledge the gift in the following lines, and then depart : — 

" ' Aquesta casa reta empedrada 
Empedrada de cuatro vens; 
Sun amo de aquesta casa 
Es omo de compliment.' 

" If nothing is given, the last line reads thus: — 

- " ' No es homo dc comnliment.' " 



OF ST. AUGUSTINE, FLORIDA. 117 



CHAPTER XIX. 

ST. AUGUSTINE IN ITS OLD AGE.— 1565-1868. 

Three hundred and three years have' now passed over 
the walls of this venerable city. Ten generations of men 
and women have passed away since this ancient city had an 
existence and a name. One can look back to 1565 and pic- 
ture to the mind the galleons of Spain anchored off its 
harbor; seethe gallant Adelantado Menendez, clad in mail, 
preceded by the standards of Spain, and followed by his men 
at arms, his bowmen and his cavaliers, taking possession of 
the country in the name of his sovereign. The waves roll 
in upon the same shores now as they did then ; the green, 
grassy marshes and 03'ster-clad banks present to our eyes 
the same appearance as they did to theirs ; the white sandy 
beach which received the impress of the iron-clad heel of 
the cavalier, now yields to the pressure of your foot ; the 
rustling pines along the shore cast their pleasant shadows 
over you as they did over them, and perchance the same 
eager thoughts of gain pervade your breast as you pass be- 
neath them, as filled the hearts and souls of those who long 
ago came seeking gold and wealth unmeasured upon those 
shores. 

Three hundred years ago, and St. Augustine stood the 
solitary settlement of the white race north of the Gulf of 
Mexico in all that great expanse which now boasts of its 
thirty-four States, its three hundred cities, and its thirty 
millions of people. 

Then the Province of Florida extended northward to the 
pole, and westward to the Pacific. At a later period, after 
the voyages of the French and English, its boundaries were 
limited to the shores of the Chesapeake and the Mississippi 
river, and were subsequently gradually contracted to their 
present limits, so that Florida once represented upon the 
maps all of the United States. 

The life of St. Augustine runs parallel with that of Spain. 
For a long period Spain was at the head of European mon- 
archies ; its rulers held sway over more vast possessions 
than had ever belonged to any single crown since the days 



118 THE HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES 

of the Csesars ; wealth flowed into its coffers from the JSTew 
World ill boundless profusion, and corruption, venality and 
effeminacy followed in its train. The whole continent of 
America was claimed as its dominion. Its fleets anchored 
upon every shore for conquest or exploration, and its ban- 
ners wei e unfurled by its generals, and the cross was planted 
by its priests, upon ever}" headland. From all this grandeur 
and eminence the Spanish monarchy has been cast down. 
Driven from land to land, it has receded from the main land 
of America, and has exchanged its dominion over a conti- 
nent to the islands of the sea, which it holds with a preca- 
rious grasp, and it now remains in a dry old age a fourth- 
rate power where once it stood foremost. The first planted 
of all the cities of the United States, St. Augustine, now 
ranks among the least. 

Ten years have been added to the longevity of the ancient 
city since the first publication of this work. Ten years do 
not make their mark upon the aged man as they do upon 
the youth launching forth into manhood, or as the}^ do upon 
him who in the full measure of his matured strength is 
battling with life. On the nation at large, these ten years 
have left almost ineffaceable scars and bruises ; ten years, 
the most important, the weightiest and the gravest of any 
since the throes of the great revolution which gave birth to 
the nation. This long sad period has left no mark upon its 
walls — grey and mouldy with the weight of years, and have 
scarcely added a tinge the more of age and sorrow — and 
yet the inner life of the old city has sustained a great 
shock. The system of servitude, which has now been 
swept away, was the sole dependence of many aged persons, 
of many poor widows and orphan children. 

Servants in St. Agustine were treated Avith paternal kind- 
ness ; they had grown up in the family of the indulgent 
master, had been his play-mate in infancy, and rendered 
willing service. They had their holidays and their balls, 
and were ever found in the background at all festive gath- 
erings, enjoying, upon a privileged footing, the pleasures 
of the hour, looking on and commenting with pride upon 
the graceful movements in the dance of their young mis- 
tresses, and anon whirling each other around to the music, 
in the corridors, with the unrestrained exuberance of their 
simple and unalloyed happiness. All this has passed away, 
their homes are broken up, the poor widow and the orphan 
children have been brought to want, the sound of music 
and dancing no longer resound in the old streets, the pri- 



OF ST. AUGUSTINE, FLORIDA. 119 

vilegecl honse-maid and man-servant no longer do their easy 
tasks with cheerful song and merry laugh. 

The naval forces of the United vStates took possession of 
St. Augustine in 1862. Batteries had been mounted at the 
fort, and a small garrison of Confederate troops were in 
military occupation of the place, but too few in numbers to 
offer any resistance, and the city was surrendered by the 
civil authorities upon the demand of Captain Dupout. The 
4th New Hampshire regiment first garrisoned the city. 
The old fort was brushed up and repaired, the earth-works 
strengthened, and barracks built on the platform.. Occa- 
sionally reconnoitering parties of Confederates approached 
the town, and on one occasion a festive party of ofiicers, 
who had gone out to Mr. Solanas, near Picolata, to attend 
a dance, were captured, with their music and ambulance, 
by Captain Dickinson, celebrated for many daring exploits. 
It was even believed that this daring partisan had ridden 
through the city at night in the guise of a Federal cavaliy 
officer. On another occasion, the commanding officer of 
the garrison at St. Augustine was captured on the road 
from Jacksonville by a Confederate picket. 

The inhabitants, isolated from all means of obtaining 
supplies from without the lines, were reduced to great 
straits. The only condition upon which they were allowed 
to purchase, was the acceptance of an oath of loyalty. 
Sympathizing strongly with the South, they were placed in 
an unfortunate position, and many doubtless sufiered 
greatly. At one period, those of the citizens who had rela- 
tives in the Confederate service were ordered to leave the 
city. Then ensued a scene which beggars description. 
Men, women and children were huddled on board a vessel, 
and, homeless and helpless, were carried along the coast 
and disembarked, shelterless, on the banks of the ISTassau 
river, to make their way to food and shelter as best they 
could — hardships which hardly seemed called for by any 
military necessity. Many of the young men of the city 
went into the Confederate service and served through the 
war with distinction, but many fell victims on the battle- 
field, in the hospitals, or from exposure to the rigorous cli- 
mate of Virginia and Tennessee, to which they were unac- 
customed. 

To these misfortunes succeeded to all, sales and forcible 
deprivation of property, under the most rigorous construc- 
tion of most rigorous laws — the unsettling of titles and the 
loss of mean have combined to lessen the ability of the 



120 HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES OF ST. AUGUSTINE. 

people to do more than try to live, without much effort to 
improve their homes and the appearance of the city. 

Some changes have taken ph^ce in the suburbs of the city. 
Macariz, the site of the old Indian town, belonging to the 
late Judge Douglas, with its beautiful groves of forest 
trees, has been utterly destroyed ; and a once pleasant cot- 
tage home, near the stockades, dear to the writer, cared for 
and embellished with many things pleasant to the eye, fra- 
grant with the ever blooming roses and honeysuckles, has, 
under the rude hand of war, been utterly destroyed, with 
its library, its furniture, and all its pleasant surroundings. 

But while man's work has been to destroy, Nature has 
done much within these few years to restore one of its for- 
mer sources of prosperity, the cultivation of the orange, 
which, having been at one period almost utterly destro^'ed 
by the cold, and then by the coccus insect, is now fast re- 
gaining its pristine vigor and productiveness, aud promises 
in a few years to furnish to the city more permanent and 
abundant sources of prosperity than it has ever had. 

With the infusion of Northern energy and capital, much 
could be done to further the prosperity of the old city, by 
building up lirst-class hotels and boarding-houses for visitors 
<luring the winter, by rebuilding the Picolata railway, thus 
facilitating access to the city, and thus a means of support 
could be given to its inhabitants. 

I am sure that no one will feel otherwise than that its 
old age shall be tranquil and serene, and that its name may 
ever be associated with pleasant memories. 




BUSINESS SUPPLEMENT AND THE STORY OP JUAN ORTIZ. 




Sewanee, Tenn. 



JUNIOR DEPARTMENT. 
GEN'L. T. GORGAS, Head Master. 



B®"Situated on the Plateau of the Cumberland Mountains, in the Southern 
portion of Middle Tennessee, a location of unrivalled salubrity ; temperate cli- 
mate, and accessible by Kail-road communication. 

Expenses of Board and Tuition very low, and vacation in the Winter season. 
For information, apply to 

G, M. FAIRBANKS, Gen'l Treasurer, 
University Place, Tennessee. 

St, Mary's Hall, for Girls, 
burlington college, 

(Preparatory Department,) for Boys, 

THE BISHOP OP NEW-JERSEY, President. 

Terms, per School Year, $450. 

t^^ I^irst- Class JEducation, and no Uxtra Cliarges.'^^s. 

Burlington, N. J. 

nifiiiif f^F 1 iiiiHii. 

This Institution has a continuous Session of Nine Months, 

commencing annually on the 1st day of October, and ending on the Thurs- 
day before the 4th of July ensuing. 

The organization of the Institution is very complete, embracing extensive 
and thorough Courses of Instruction in Literature and Science, and in the 
Professions of Law, Medicine and Engineering. 

Ji@"For details, estimated expenses, &c., send for Catalogue to Wm. Wer- 

TENBAKER, SeC, Or S. MAUPIN, 

CHAIRMAN OF THE FACTJLTT. 

P. O. — "University of Virginia." 

[From iRViNQ's " Conquest op Florida," just published (Dec, 1868,) by Putnam & Son, New York.] 

STORY OF JUAN ORTIZ. 

Shortly after Pamphilo de Narvaez had left the village of Hirrihigua, on his 
disastrous march into the interior, a small vessel of his fleet, which was in quest 
of him, put into the bay of Espiritu Santo. Anchoring before the tov/n, they 



> 



BUSINESS SUPPLEMENT, INTERSPERSED WITH 



WASHINGTON UNIVEESITY. 



Hiedlieml Bepa^meate 



BALTIMORE, Md. 



FACULTY: 

Rev. Thomas E. Bond, M. D., President. 

G. C. M. Roberts, M. D., L.L. D., Emeritus Professor of Obstetrics and 

Diseases of Women and Children. 
Charles W. Chancellor, M. D., Professor of Descriptive and Surgical 

Anatomy. 
J. P. Logan, M. D., Professor of the Principles and Practice of Medicine. 
Harvey L. Byrd, M. D., Professor of Obstetrics. 

Martin P. Scott, M. D., Professor of the Diseases of Women & Children. 
Edward Warren, M. D., Professor of the Principles & Practice of Surgery. 
John F. Monmonier, M.D., Professor of Physiology and General Pathology. 
J. J. Moorman, M. D., Professor of Medical Jurisprudence and Hygiene. 
Francis T. Miles, M. D., Professor of Microscopic Anatomy and Practical 

Physiology. 
Joseph E. Clagett, M. D., Professor of Materia Medica and Therapeutics. 
Clarence Morfit, M. D., Professor of Medical Chemistry and Pharmacy. 
John N. Monmonier, M. D., Demonstrator of Anatomy. 



The next regular Session of Washington University will begin on Thurs- 
day, the first day of October, and terminate on the 22d dliy of Feb'y, '69. 

One Beneficiary Student from each Congressional District of the late slave- 
holding States, is annually received in this Institution — precedence being given 
to wounded and disabled soldiers. 

In addition to a Daily Clinic of the most satisfactory character, this Institu- 
tion has attached to it a Hospital of its own, in which every possible facility is 
afforded for acquiring a Practical Knowledge of Medicine and Surgery. 

By a recent contract with the proper authorities, the Seaman's Hospital of 
the port of Baltimore has been placed exclusively under the control of the Faculty 
of Washington University. 

Anatomical Material is abundant. 

A Prize of One Hundred Dollars will be given for the best Thesis presented 
by a candidate for graduation. 

FEES :— Matriculation, $5 ; Dissection, $10 ; Professors', $120 ; Gradua- 
tion, $20; Beneficiary, $35, for each Session. 

For additional information, address the subscriber, care of Post-office box 
1,267, Baltimore, Md. 

JOSEPH P. LOG AX, 31. D., Dean of the Faculty. 

saw a few Indians, who made signs for them to land, pointing to a letter in the 
end of a cleft reed, stuck in the ground. The Spaniards supposed, and probably 
with justice, that it was a letter of instruction left by Narvaez, giving informa- 
tion of his movements and destination. They made signs for the Indians to bring 
it to them. The latter, however, refused, but getting into a canoe came on board, 
where four of them offered to remain as hostages for such Spaniards as chose to 



THE STORY OF JUAN ORTIZ. 



FLOEIDA LANDS FOE SALE. 

Several valuable Tracts of Land on the St. Johns river, 
suitable for ORANGE GROVES : and several thousand acres of valuable 
PLANTING and TIMBER LANDS, in St. Johns, Duval, Alachua, Putnam, 
Marion and Valusia counties. J|@" Will be sold in lots to suit purchasers, 
and upon a long credit. Apply to 

J. M. FAIRBANS, 

Jacksonville, Florida. 

J. P. SANDERSON, 
ATTORNEY AT LAW, 

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. 

FLEMING & DANIEL, 
ATTORNEYS AT LAW, 

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. 

JAMES M. BAKER, 
ATTORNEY AT LAW, 

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. 

B. B. ANDREWS, 
ATTORNEY AT LAW, 

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. 

WILKINSON CALL, 
ATTORNEY AT LAW, 

JACKSONVILLE, Fla, 



go on shore for the letter. Upon this, four Spaniards stepped into the canoe and 
were swiftly conveyed to the shore. The moment they landed, a multitude of 
savages rushed out of the village and surrounded them, and, at the same time, 
the hostages on board plunged into the sea and swam to shore. The crew of the 
vessel, seeing the number of the enemy, and dreading some further mishap, made 
sail with all haste, abandoning their luckless comrades to their fate. 



BUSINESS SUPPLEMENT, INTERSPERSED WITH 



DEWITT C. DAWKINS, 
ATTORNEY AT LAW, 

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. 

W. M. IVES, 
ATTORNEY AT LAW, 

LAKE CITY, Fla. 

J. J. FINLAY, 
ATTORNEY AT LAW, 

LAKE CITY, Fla. 

LAND AGENCY. 



L^NDS BOXJaHT ^^ND SOLD, 

And attention given to the Collection of Rents, and the Man- 
agement, Purchase and Sale of 



REAL ESTATE, OF EVER! 



=^FOR ABSENT PARTIES, AND OTHERS, 

ON REASONABLE TERMS. 

C. L. ROBINSON, 

REAL-ESTATE AGENT, 

fTacksonville, Fla, 



The captives were conveyed with savage triumph into the village of Hirrihi- 
gua ; for the whole had been a stratagem of the cacique, to get some of the white 
men into his power, upon whom he might wreak his vengeance. He placed his 
prisoners under a strong guard, until a day of religious festival. They were then 
stripped naked, led out into the public square of the village, and turned loose, one 
at a time, to be shot at with arrows. To prolong their misery and the enjoyment 
of their tormentors, but one Indian was allowed to shoot at a time. In this way 
the first three were sacrificed, and the cacique took a vindictive pleasure in behold- 
ing them, running in their agony from corner to corner, vainly seeking an asylum 
in every nook, until after repeated wounds they were .shot to death. 



THE STORY OP JUAN ORTIZ. 



M. A. DZIALYNSKI, 

■WHOLESALE AND RETAIL DEALER IN 

'Pf §©tii, il©tM 



Hats, Boots and Shoes, Yankee Notions, 

Reed'§; Building, Bay ^treet9 

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. 

Orders from the Country promptly attended to. 

C. SLAGER, 

"WHOLESALE AND RETAIL DEALER IN 

Shoes, Boots, Hardware, (rroceries, 

AND 

JA.CK:S0NVILLE, Florida. 

Juan Ortiz, a youth, scarce eighteen years of age, of a noble family of Seville, 
was the fourth victim. As they were leading him forth, his extreme youth 
touched with compassion the hearts of the wife and daughters of the cacique, who 
interceded in his favor. 

The cacique listened to their importunities, and granted for the present the life 
of Ortiz; — but a wretched life did he lead. From morning vmtil evening he was 
employed in bringing wood and water, and was allowed butlittle sleep and scanty 
food. Not a day passed that he was not beaten. On festivals he was an object of 
barbarous amusement to the cacique, who would oblige him to run, from sunrise 
to sunset, in the public square of the village, where his companions had met their 
untimely end ; Indians being stationed with bows and arrows, to shoot him should 
he halt one moment. When the day was spent, the unfortunate youth iaj'- 
stretched on the hard floor of the hut, more dead than alive. At such times the 
wife and daughters of the cacique would come to him privately with food and 
clothing, and by their kind treatment his life was preserved. 



BUSINESS SUPPLEMENT, INTERSPERSED WITH 




JACKSONVILLE, Fla. 
Always Re-fitted foi^ the Winter Travel. 

Is situated on a retired portion of Bay Street, commanding a view of the St. 
Johns river, and in proximity to the landing of the Charleston 
Steamers. B@„Every attention paid to visitors. 

J. W. HAWKINS & CO., Proprietors. 

FOBSYTH ST., {near rine,) JACKSONVILLE, Fla. 

Special Attention to Persons Arriving or Leaving by the Early Train or Boats, 

HIS House, entirely new, pleasantly situated, and completely fitted up, 
is now open for the accommodation of Travelers and Boarders. — 
Grateful for the liberal patronage always shown me, I respectfully 
solicit the continued favors of my friends at my new location, where 
every convenience will be offered for their pleasure and comfort. 

Mrs. E. HUDNALL, Proprietress. 



Forsyth St., near the Depot, - - JACKSONVILLE, Fla. 



S. S. ALDERMAN & CO., Proprietors, 

(Formerly of Marianna, Fla.) 

B^„The best attention given to guests, and good accommodations, in every 

respect, provided. 

At length the cacique, determining to put an end to his victim's existence, 
ordered that he should be bound down upon a wooden frame, in the form of a 
huge gridiron, placed in the public square, over a bed of live coals, and roasted 
alive. 

The cries and shrieks of the poor youth reached his female protectors, and their 
entreaties were once more successful with the cacique. They unbound Ortiz, 
dragged him from the fire, and took him to their dwelling, where they bathed 
him with the juice of herbs, and tended him with assiduous care. After many 
days he recovered from his wounds, though marked with many a scar. 



THE STORY OP JUAN ORTIZ. 



LAKE CITY, Fla. 



Long established, Sf in proximity toR. R. Depot. 

A. S. Barnes & Co., 

PUBLISHEES OF THE 

National Series of School Books, 

AND WHOLESALE 

BOOKSELLERS AND STATIONERS, 

III and 113 William St., Cor. John, 
NEW YORK. 

Catalogue sent to Teachers, on application, 

• TRUITLAND NURSERIES, Augusta, Ga. 

p. J. BEBCKMANS, Proprietor. 

^mi %xu%, ^x^t Wm%, 

In Very Large and Varied Quantities, 

Adapted to the Latitude of the Gulf and other Southern States. 

^^"Descriptive Catalogues, Free, on Application. 

ROBT. C. LOWRY, Agent, Jacksonville, Fla. 

His employment was now to guard the cemetery of the village. This was in a 
lonely field in the bosom of a forest. The bodies of the dead were deposited in 
wooden boxes, covered with boards, without any fastening except a stone or a log 
of wood laid upon the top ; so that the bodies were often carried away by wild 
beasts. 

In this cemetery was Ortiz stationed, with a bow and arrows, to watch day and 
night, and was told that should a single body be carried away, he would be burnt 
alive. He returned thanks to God for having freed him from the dreadful pre- 
sence of the cacique, hoping to lead a better life with the dead than he had done 
with the living. 

While watching thus one long wearisome night, sleep overpowered him towards 
morning. He was awakened by the falling lid of one of the chests, and, running 
to it, found it empty. It had contained the body of an infant recently deceased, 
the child of an Indian of great note. 



BUSINESS SUPPLEMENT, INTERSPERSED WITH 



J. M. FAIRBANKS, 

BAY STREET, - - JACKSONVILLE, FLA., 




AND DEALEK IN 

HAY, CORN, OATS, BRAN, PROVISIONS, FLOUR, 

PORK, BACON, LARD, BUTTER, &c. 

Ijimef Cenient, ITaiTy Srick, Manipulated Manures, 

Gr XT .^^ 3>a- o s , 

GROCERIES. 

ADVANCES OK CONSIGNMENTS. 



JOHN CLARK, 




J 

AND WHOLESALE AND RETAIL DEALER IN 

LIQUORS, SEGARS, &c., &c. 

Agent for the Steamers DARLINGTON and HATTIE. 

JACKSONVILLE, FLA. 

Ortiz doubted not some animal had dragged it away, and immediately set out 
in pursuit. After wandering for some time, he heard, a short distance within 
the woods, a noise like that of a dog gnawing bones. Warily drawing near to the 
.spot, he dimly perceived an animal among the bushes, and invoking succor from 
on high, let fly an arrow at it. The thick and tangled underwood prevented him 
from seeing the eifect of his shot, but as the animal did not stir, he flattered him- 
self that it had been fatal; with this hope he waited until the day dawned, when 
he beheld his victim, a huge animal of the panther kind, lying dead, the arrow 
having passed through his entrails and cleft his heart. 

Gathering together the mangled remains of the infant, and replacing them in 
the coflin, Ortiz dragged his victim in triumph to the village, with the arrow still 
in his body. The exploit gained him credit with the old hunters, and for some 
time softened even the ferocity of the cacique. The resentment of the latter, 
however, for the wrongs he had sufterod from white men, was too bitter to be ap- 
peased. Some time after, his eldest daughter came to Ortiz, and warned him that 
her father had determined to sacrifice him at the next festival, which was just at 
hand, and that the influence of her mother, her sisters, and herself would no 
longer avail him. She wished him, therefore, to take refuge with a neighboring 



THE STORY OP JUAN ORTIZ. 



The Spaniards in Florida: 

BEING 

Fairbanks' History of St. Augustine, 

HE VISED, 

WITH ADDITIONS BY THE AUTHOR. 



FOCKET MAP OF THE STATE; Frice $1.25, 

AND 

©THEi WDiiCi ©II rL®iliA« 



FOR SALE BY 



Jacksonville. 



H. EOBINSON, 




Corner Ocean and Forsyth Sts., (adjoining Post-office,) 



C. PARKHURST. 



A. B. HITS8EY. 



C. PARKHUEST 8b CO., 

WHOLESALE AND RETAIL DEALERS IN 

CORN, FLOUR, DRY GOODS, GROCERIES, 
Hardware, Woodware, Furniture, &c.. 

Ocean Street, near Bay, - - - JACKSONVILLE, Pla. 



cacique named Mucozo, who loved her, and sought her in marriage, and who, for 
her sake, would befriend him. "This very night at midnight," said the kind- 
hearted maiden, " at the northren extremity of the village you will find a trusty 
friend who will guide you to a bridge, about two leagues hence ; on arriving there, 
you must send him back, that he may reach home before the morning dawn, to 
avoid suspicion— for well he knows that this bold act, in daring to assist you, 
may bring down destruction upon us both. Six leagues further on, you will come 
to the village of Mucozo — tell him that I have sent you, and expect him to be- 
friend you in your extremity — I know he will do it — go, and may your God pro- 
tect you!" Ortiz threw himself at the feet of his generous protectress, and 



10 BUSINESS SUPPLEMENT, INTERSPERSED WITH 

T. HARTEIDGE, 

Bay Street, - - - - Jaclisonville, Fla., 

GENERAL DEALER IN 

DRY GOODS, GROCERIES, PROVISIONS, 

CORN, &c., Wholesale & Retail. 

Commission Consignments entrusted to him, carefully attended to. 

FRANK SMITH & BRO., 

Wholesale Dealers in 

GROCERIESsFROVISIONS 

NO. 1 REQUA'S BLOCK, 

JACKSONVILLE, FLA. 

J^TJEMITUIIB HOUSE, 

Near the R. R. Depot, 

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. 



Large Supplies constantly kept on hand, and Orders 
promptly filled. 

Proi)rietor of the ICE DEPOT, 
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. 

poured out his acknowledgements for the kindness she had always shown him. 
The Indian guide was at the place appointed, and they left the village without 
alarming the warlike savages. "When they came to the bridge, Ortiz sent back 
the guide, in obedience to the injunction of his mistress, and, continuing his 
flight, found himself, by break of day, on the banks of a small stream near the 
village of Mucozo. 

Looking cautiously around, he espied two Indians fishing. As he was unac- 
quainted with their language, and could not explain the cause of his coming, he 
was in dread lest they should take him for an enemy and kill him. He, there- 
fore, ran to the place where they had deposited their weapons and seized upon 
them. The savages fled to the village without heeding his assurances of friendly 
intention. The inhabitants sallied out with bows and arrows, as though they 
would attack him. Ortiz fixed an arrow in his bow, but cried out at the same 
moment, that he came not as an enemy but as an ambassador from a female 
cacique to their chief. Fortunately one present understood him, and interpreted 
his words. On this the Indians unbent their bows, and returning with him to 



THE STORY OF JUAN ORTIZ. 



11 



BETTELINI & TOGNI, 

JACKSONVILLE, Fla., 



DEALERS IN 




IMFORT, niBECT FROM FRANCE, 

Champagne & Claret Wines, Cognac Brandy, 
^lii ®THEi riEliOH @®@ii. 



fi@- AGENTS FOR HAVRE LINE OF PACKETS. 






DEALER IN 



9f. 



fine mvLit\t%, JfctoelrM, Mbcr anb 3\vdtts Wart, 

Also, 

Ocean Street, adjoining Express Office, - - Jacksonville, Fla. 

rn TT -p 

INTERNATION'L OCEAN TELEGRAPH 

COMPANV. 

Wires extending from Lake City, Fla., to Havana, Cuba, connecting 
with all Telegraph Lines in the United States, and with the Atlantic cable 
to Europe. *-j.* Office in Jacksonville, corner Bay and Pine streets. 

W. H. HEISS, Gen. Supt. WILLIAM F. SMITH, Prest. 

their village, presented him to Mucozo. The latter, a youthful chieftain, of a 
graceful form and handsome countenance, received Ortiz kindly for the sake of 
her who had sent him ; but, on further acquaintance, became attached to him for 
his own merits, treating him with the affection of a brother. 

Hirrihigua soon heard where the fugitive had taken refuge, and demanded sev- 
eral times that he should be delivered up ; Mucozo as often declined ; considering 
himself bound by the laws of honor and hospitality to protect him. Hirrihigua 



12 BUSINESS SUPPLEMENT, INTERSPERSED WITH 



FROM savaststah: 

(At which point the R. R. and Steamship Lines from the North converge,) 

PASSENGERS TAKE THE 

Mlitalt© Ife ©mil m^ 



WHICH INTERSECTS THE 

PENSACOLA & GEORGIA ROAD, 

(which runs east and west through FLORIDA,) 

^/ JjITjEJ oak, a point mid-way betwee?i Tatlahasse 
and J^acksonvitle y 

PEOM WHENCE THEY CAN TAKE EITHER DIRECTION. 

TWO Trains are run DAILY between Savannah and 

Jacksonville, and ONE between Savannah 

and Tallahasse. 

Time, from Savannah to Jacksonville, by Express, 12 hours, 
and Without Change of Cars. 



From, JACKSONVILLE, Steainboats run on the St. John's 
Miver, in connection with the Hoad, 



1|^=^Through Tickets can be procured in New York and 
other principal cities North, for TALLAHASSP], JACKSONVILLE, and 
all points on the St. John's, and to ST. AUGUSTINE. 

The accommodations on the Roads are first class, with superior Sleeping 
Cars, and all other modern comforts. 

R. WALKER, 

General Supt. P. & G. E. 11., Tallahasse. 

H. S. HAINES, 

General Supt. A. & G. E. E., Savannah. 

C. D. OWENS, 

General Business Agt. A. & G. E. E., 

No. 40 Broadtvay, New York. 

then employed as mediator another cacique, a brother-in-law of Mucozo, by the^ 
name of Urribarracuxi, who went in person to demand Ortiz. The generous 
Mucozo, however, refused to deliver up to a cruel enemy, the poor fugitive who 



THE STORY OF JUAN ORTIZ. 



13 



BROCK'S LINE ON THE ST. JOHNS. 




THE STEAMERS 



iliLiHifiH and Mklll 



FORM THE LINE 



Beta JflCISONVILLE and ENTERPRISE, Elofida, 

Making at least SEMI- WEEKLY TRIPS during the Winter, and adapting 
their Schedule to the demands of Travel and Trade on the River : 



Mandarin,* 

Hibernia,* 

Magnolia, 

Green-Cove Spring^'' 

Hogarth's Wharf,* 

Picolata,* 

Tocoi, 

Federal Point,* 

Orange Mills, 

Dancy's Wliarf,* 

IVJietstone's ** 

Mussell's " 

Palatka,* 



-TOUCHING AT — 

Hargrove's Landing, 
Morse Landing, 
Welaka,* 
Salt Lake,* 
Georgetown, 
Valusia,* 
Hawkinsv tile,* 
Cabbage Bluff > 
Starke's Landing, 
Blue Spring,* 
Emanuel Landing, 
Mellonville*, and 
Enterprise* — 



(Where visitors are entertained at the BROCK HOUSE,) 

And leaving Mails at such of those places as are marked with a * — affording 
ample opportunities to Strangers and others to visit the various localities on 
the Beautiful St. John's, and connecting with tlie Eail-road lines to and 
from Savannah. 

THIS IS THE OLD-ESTABLISHED LOCAL LINE OF THE WHOLE 

KIVER ROUTE. 

fii^'For detailed information, as to Schedules of Time and Rates, apply to 

JOHN CLARK, Agent, 

Dock, foot of Ocean St., JACKSONVILLE, Fla. 



had come recommended to his protection, and treated the very request as a stain 
upon his honor. The two caciques continued their importunities, but the high- 



14 THE STORY OP JUAN ORTIZ. 

minded savage remained faithful to his guest, though in maintaining inviolate 
the sacred rites of hospitality, he lost the friendship of his brother-in-law, and 
forfeited the hand of her he tenderly loved, the beautiful daughter of Hirrihigua. 

At this juncture tidings reached Muco^o of the arrival of De Soto and his 
troops at the village of Hirrihigua, and that it was their intention to conquer the 
country. Alarmed at this intelligence, he addressed himself to Ortiz. "You all 
know," said he, "what I have done for you; that T have sheltered you when 
friendless, and have chosen rather to fall into disgrace with my relations and 
nei""hbors, than to deliver you into the hands of your enemies. This I did with- 
out thought or hope of reward, but the time has come when you can repay me for 
my friendship. Go to the chieftain of this army of white men — represent to him 
the asylum I have extended to you, and which, in like case, I would have 
afforded to any of your countrymen — entreat him, in return, not to lay waste my 
territory, and assure him that I and mine are ready to devote ourselves to his 
service. 

Ortiz gladly departed on the mission, accompanied by fifty chosen warriors. It 
happened that about the same time Baltazar de Gallegos had been dispatched, as 
has been already mentioned, on his embassy to Mucozo. 

As Ortiz and his Indian escort, therefore, were on their way to the village of 
Hirrihigua, they came in sight of Baltazar, and his band of lancers, glistening at 
a distance, in the midst of a verdant plain, skirted by a wood. 

The Indians would have concealed themselves in the forest, until the Christians 
could be informed that they were friends ; but Ortiz slighted their advice, insist- 
ino- that his countrymen would at once recognize him ; not reflecting that in ap- 
pearance he was in nowise different from his savage companions, being like them 
almost naked, his body browned by exposure to the sun, his arms painted, a 
quiver at his back, a bow and arrow in his hand, and his head adorned with 
feathers. 

No sooner did the Spaniards descry the savages, than they came down upon 
them at full gallop, heedless of the voice of their captain ; for they were newly 
raised soldiers, full of spirit, and eager for a brush with the natives. 

The Indians fled terrified to the wood. One, however, was overtaken and slain. 
Juan Ortiz was assaulted by Alvaro Nieto, one of the stoutest and boldest 
troopers in the army. Ortiz parried the thrust of his lance with his bow, running 
at the same time, and leaping from side to side with great agility to avoid the 
horse, crying out lustily Xivilla, Xivilla — meaning Seville, Seville ; and making 
the sign of the cross with his arm and bow, to signify that he was a Christian. 

Alvaro Nieto hearing him cry out Xivilla, demanded of him whether he was 
Juan Ortiz. On his replying in the atSrmative, he seized him by the arm, lifted 
him upon the croup of his saddle, and scoured away to present him to Baltazar de 
Galleo-os. The captain received him with great joy, and ordered his troopers to 
be recalled, who were beating up the woods and hunting the poor Indians like so 
many deer. 

Ortiz himself went into the forrest and called to the Indians, to come out and 
fear nothing. Many, however, fled back to their village, to acquaint Mucozo 
with what had happened. Others joined Ortiz in small parties, upbraiding him 
with his rashness, but when they found one of their people wounded, they were so 
exasperated, that they would have laid violent hands upon him had not theS( .n- 
iards been present. 

They were at length pacified. The soldiers bound up the wounds of the Indian, 
and placed him upon a horse. The troopers, having taken up all the Indians 
behind them, galloped away for the encampment of the governor. Previously to 
setting off, however, Ortiz dispatched an Indian to Mucozo, with a true account 
of the late events, lest that cacique should be irritated by the alarming statement 
brought by the fugitives. 

The night was already far advanced when Baltazar de Gallegos and his band 
reached the camp. "When the governor heard the tramp of their horse, he feared 



9 



p/ C 



THE STORY OP JUAN ORTIZ — CONCLUDED. 15 

some mischance had befallen them, as he had not looked for them before the expi- 
ration of three days. His apprehensions were soon turned to rejoicing. He 
praised Gallegos and his men for the skill and success of their expedition, and 
received Ortiz as his own son, sympathizing with his past sufferings, and present- 
ing him with a suit of clothes, arms, and a good horse. The Indians he treated 
with kindness, and ordered the wounded savage to be carefully attended. He then 
dispatched two of the natives to Mucozo, thanking him for his past kindness to 
Ortiz, accepting his proffers of friendship, and inviting him to the camp. Not 
an eye was closed this night, but one and all joined in the revelry which wel- 
comed the liberation of poor Ortiz. 



OCT 8 1900 



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